UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA. 


OK 


OjTlfU/Q  of 

Accession  .......  9.&45-.Q.....      Class 


With  the  Compliments  of 
CENTAL    DEPARTMENT, 
YQUNQ  MEN'S  CWISTI/fN  ASSOCIATION, 

OF  CHICAGO. 


The    Religious    Condition 
of  Young   Men 


A    STUDY 


BY 

JAMES  F.  GATES 

Secretary  Central   Department 
Young  Men's  Christian  Association  of  Chicago 


With  a  Preface  by 

GEORGE    A.    COE 

Professor  of  Philosophy 
at  Northwestern  University 


Published  by 

The  Central  Department 

Young  Men's  Christian  Association 

of  Chicago 

1901 


COPYRIGHT  M  901 

BY  JAMES  F.   GATES 


PREFACE. 


The  assumption  underlying  this  Study  is  that  Christian 
workers  need  definite  and  specialized  knowledge  of  the 
classes  of  persons  to  which  they  minister.  As  a  manu- 
facturer of  steel  studies  the  chemical  constitution  of  his 
materials  and  measures  the  strains  and  stresses  which  his 
product  will  bear,  so  the  methods  and  results  of  psychology 
and  sociology  should  be  harnessed  in  the  service  of  religion. 
I  am  convinced  not  only  that  this  assumption  is  just,  but 
also  that  the  near  future  is  to  witness  many  a  transfor- 
mation in  religious  work  through  such  consecration  of 
intellect. 

The  present  Study  is  an  excellent  foretaste  of  the  pos- 
sibilities in  this  direction.  It  aims  less,  however,  at  im- 
mediate practical  results  than  to  illustrate  a  standpoint  and 
a  method.  The  standpoint  seems  to  me  self-evidently 
sound,  and  the  method  well  matured  and  capable  of  many 
important  applications.  I  am  inclined  to  think,  too,  that 
the  practical  inferences  that  may  be  drawn  from  the  essay 
are  more  numerous  and  important  than  will  appear  from 
any  but  a  very  careful  reading.  These  inferences,  in  fact, 
the  reader  is  expected  to  discover  for  himself.  But  it 
should  be  said  that  the  many-sidedness,  both  theoretical 
and  practical,  of  the  problems  here  attacked  can  be 
aqeduately  appreciated  only  by  one  who  has  attempted  to 


93470 


work  out  such  a  problem  for  himself.  This  is,  perhaps, 
particularly  true  of  Chapter  V.  I  have  read  the  responses 
upon  which  this  chapter  is  based,  and  they  have  produced 
such  an  impressive  picture  of  conditions  among  city  men 
as  can  be  had,  so  far  as  I  am  aware,  in  no  other  way. 

Though  the  Study  has  peculiarly  direct  reference  to 
the  work  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association,  its 
contents  have  significance  for  all  who  are  interested  in  the 
Kingdom  of  God.  May  it  awaken  many  persons  to  the 
kind  of  consecration  of  which  it  is  an  example ! 

GEORGE   A.  COE. 
Northwestern    University,  April, 


Author's  Preface. 


The  present  study  was  prepared  for  and  read  before 
the  General  Secretaries  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian 
Association,  at  their  biennial  conference,  held  at  Thousand 
Island  Park,  New  York,  June  6-10,  1900. 

As  stated  in  the  context,  no  special  claim  is  made  for 
the  general  value  of  the  results  secured.  If  any  merit 
lies  in  the  study,  it  is  in  the  methods  set  forth. 

Starting  with  the  assumption  that  to  work  successfully 
among  young  men  one  must  know  young  men,  we  have 
tried  to  suggest  methods  for  securing  such  information. 

There  was  no  thought  at  first  of  printing  the  Study, 
at  least  not  until  much  additional  work  had  been  done. 
Numerous  and  urgent  requests  from  fellow  secretaries 
and  from  pastors  of  different  denominations,  however,  are 
responsible  for  its  presentation  in  this  form  at  this  time. 
While  additional  results  might  be  interesting,  enough  is 
probably  here  presented  for  purposes  of  illustration. 

I  wish  to  acknowledge  my  indebtedness  to  Professor 
Coe,  of  Northwestern  University,  for  most  helpful  sugges- 
tions, and  to  my  associates  in  the  Central  Department, 
George  W.  Ehler,  Walter  M.  Wood  and  Frederick  White, 
for  their  active  and  efficient  co-operation. 

JAMES   F.   GATES. 

April,  1 90 1. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I.     The  Problem  Stated .Page     7 

Failure  due  to  lack  of  knowledge.  What  we  know  about 
young  men.  What  we  ought  to  know.  How  to  secure  this 
information. 

CHAPTER  II.     A  Statistical  Background Page   19 

The  field  of  the  Association  in  the  United  States,  in  Illinois, 
in  Chicago.  Classification  of  young  men  according  to  age, 
nativity,  and  occupation. 

CHAPTER  III.     Membership  Classification Page  33 

Central  Department  members  classified  as  to  age,  nationality, 
occupation,  church  affiliation,  and  Association  privileges  used. 

CHAPTER  IV.     Church  Investigation Page  45 

Proportion  of  males  to  females  in  the  church.  Age  divisions 
of  males.  Census  of  attendance  at  church  services,  prayer- 
meetings,  young  people's  societies  and  Sunday-schools. 

CHAPTER  V.     A  Group  Study Page  61 

The  question  list.  The  difference  between  Christian  and 
non-Christian  men  with  reference  to  beliefs  and  practices. 
Summary  and  conclusion. 

APPENDIX Page  75 

Improved  system   for   tabulating  membership  information. 


OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY 

OF 


The  Religious  Condition  of  Young   Men 

A    STUDY. 


CHAPTER   I. 

THE    PROBLEM    STATED. 

THERE  has  been  a  growing  conviction  for  several  years 
that  in  association  work  we  were  spending  to6  much 
time  on  methods  without  being  sufficiently  ac- 
quainted with  principles.  Year  after  year  finds  the  same 
problems  staring  us  in  the  face  and  still  crying  for  solution. 
At  each  succeeding  conference  we  look  them  squarely  in  the 
face,  as  did  the  eminent  Scotch  divine  with  reference  to 
scriptural  difficulties,  and  then  pass  on.  Particularly  is  this 
so  in  the  case  of  problems  in  our  religious  work.  From  all 
sides  come  reports  of  dissatisfaction  with  meager  results 
and  appeals  for  methods  of  work  that  will  change  the  situation 
so  that  what  is  pronounced  the  crowning  feature  of  our  work 
may  be  such  in  fact,  as  well  as  in  name.  Affairs  have  come  to 
such  a  pass  that  the  conclusion  is  well-nigh  unanimous  that 
at  least  one  of  the  reasons  why  our  problems  continue  to  lack 
solution  and  our  religious  work  especially  continues  to 
furnish  meager  results,  is  that  we  do  not  understand 
the  material  with  which  we  have  to  deal.  As  gen- 
eral secretaries  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Asso- 
ciation, supposed  to  be  leaders  of  young  men,  their 
guides  and  examples,  and  of  help  in  their  symmetrical 
development,  we  do  not  know  young  men.  We  are  not 
acquainted  with  their  growth  and  development,  their 
temptations  and  difficulties.  We  do  not  appreciate  their 
divisions  into  different  ages,  nationalities,  occupations  and 
religions.  We  do  not  appreciate  that  each  one  represents 
a  definite  problem  in  himself;  that  each  is  the  product  of 


8  The  Religious  Condition  of  Young  Men. 

certain  forces  of  heredity  and  environment ;  that  these  are  the 
factors  that  have  made  him  largely  what  he  is  today;  that 
these  are  the  things  that  have  largely  determined  his  thoughts, 
his  feelings,  his  desires,  his  ambitions,  his  attitude  concerning 
life  and  its  multiform  activities  and  problems.  In  short,  the 
difficulty  is  that  we  have  not  approached  the  study  of  young 
men  in  a  scientific  way,  with  a  method  at  once  feasible  and 
adequate  to  secure  data,  without  which  it  is  impossible  to 
make  legitimate  and  reliable  conclusions. 

About  two  years  ago,  a  group  of  Chicago  secretaries,  real- 
izing the  above,  organized  a  club  for  the  twofold  purpose  of 
becoming  acquainted  with  sociological  theory,  and  at  the 
same  time  making  a  practical  study  of  young  men  from  the 
standpoint  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association.  The 
chief  unifying  factor  in  the  club  was  the  desire  to  know  young 
men  and  the  unanimous  feeling  that  we  must  have  that 
knowledge  as  association  men  before  we  could  intelligently 
serve  them.  It  was  impossible  to  plan  a  course  of  reading, 
study  or  investigation  very  far  ahead.  We  knew  so  little  of 
the  difficulties  that  would  be  encountered  that  we  were 
obliged  to  go  step  by  step,  profiting  by  our  mistakes,  and 
changing  our  course  as  light  was  given.  On  the  advice  of  a 
university  professor  of  sociology  we  first  read  Spencer's 
THE  STUDY  OF  SOCIOLOGY.  Subsequent  experience 
brought  out  the  wisdom  of  reading  this  book  at  the  very  be- 
ginning. The  chief  contribution  it  made  was  the  emphasis 
placed  on  the  absolute  necessity  of  proceeding  in  the  study 
with  a  scientific  spirit,  free  from  every  bias,  willing  to  know 
all  the  facts  and  accept  the  conclusions  which  the  facts  them- 
selves should  teach.  Our  next  step  was  to  read  the  text  of 
Small  and  Vincent,  which  gave  a  brief  treatment  of  the  nat- 
ural history  of  a  society,  and  which  dwelt  at  length  on  the 
analysis  and  description  of  society  in  biological  terms.  Ac- 
companying this  we  read  the  book  SOCIAL  ELEMENTS,  by 
Professor  Henderson,  of  the  University  of  Chicago — somewhat 
different  in  style  and  treatment,  but  similar  in  views.  By 
this  time,  in  connection  with  much  collateral  reading,  the 


The  Problem  Stated.  9 

club  became  conversant  with  the  present  status  of  sociology, 
and  took  up  the  text  on  the  PRINCIPLES  OF  SOCIOLOGY,  by 
Professor  Giddings,  of  Columbia  University.  In  the  mean- 
time, side  by  side  with  the  theoretical  work,  the  club  pursued 
its  practical  study  and  investigation,  and  would  recommend 
this  arrangement  as  the  ideal  combination.  It  is  impossible 
to  state  the  larger  outlook  which  the  theoretical  study  has 
given  the  club  as  workers  in  the  Young  Men 's  Christian  Asso- 
ciation and  the  light  this  study  has  thrown  on  the  place 
the  association  should  occupy  among  social  forces ;  or,  on  the 
other  hand,  the  illumination  which  the  practical  study  has 
given  the  theoretical  work. 

To  find  out  the  actual  religious  condition  of  young  men, 
and  especially  the  young  men  of  Chicago,  who  constitute  the 
field  of  the  Chicago  association,  was  the  problem  of  the  club. 
The  results,  in  so  far  as  they  have  been  obtained,  and  the 
methods  by  which  they  have  been  obtained  constitute  the  sub- 
ject-matter of  the  present  study. 


Before  proceeding  with  a  description  of  the  efforts  of  the 
club,  two  things  should  be  considered :  First,  what  is  already 
known  about  the  religious  condition  of  young  men;  and 
Second,  what  we  ought  to  know  before  we  can  say  we  are 
acquainted  with  their  religious  condition. 

It  has  been  interesting  to  study  the  facts  and  arguments  in 
use  by  ourselves  in  the  past,  showing  the  need  of  and  justifica- 
tion for  the  work  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association. 
On  page  14  of  the  ASSOCIATION  HAND-BOOK,  there 
are  just  thirteen  lines  devoted  to  facts  and  figures  proving  the 
demand  for  such  an  organization.  These  lines  read  as  fol- 
lows: 

"There  are  fully  13,000,000  young  men  in  the  United 
States  and  Canada.  Of  this  number  it  is  estimated  that  not 
more  than  1,000,000  are  members  of  evangelical  churches. 
There  is  no  doubt  that  at  least  7,000,000  of  them  habitually 
stay  away  from  all  churches.  Not  more  than  one-third  of 
the  boys  remain  in  the  Sundav-schools  after  thev  reach  the 


10  The  Religious  Condition  of  Young  Men. 

age  of  fifteen.  It  is  safe  to  say  that  95  per  cent  of  the  young 
men  do  little  or  nothing  in  an  aggressive  way  to  promote  the 
organized  Christian  work  of  the  churches. 

"About  nine-tenths  of  the  entire  church  membership  were 
converted  before  the  age  of  twenty-one.  When  we  consider  that 
the  majority  of  church  members  are  women,  we  can  form 
some  estimate  of  the  exceedingly  small  number  of  men  who 
accept  Christ  after  passing  through  this  age. ' ' 

As  to  the  general  indefiniteness  of  the  information  the 
statements  themselves  testify.  In  seeking  additional  in- 
formation on  this  point  it  has  been  difficult  to  secure  any- 
thing more  definite. 

There  has  been  a  general  impression  that  the  church  and 
Sunday-school  do  not  retain  young  men  in  any  great  num- 
bers after  the  age  of  sixteen.  Such  facts  as  the  following  are 
samples  of  the  information  we  have  had  on  this  subject :  The 
Congregational  Year  Book  of  1896  shows  twenty-five  churches 
in  Illinois  with  less  than  ten  men  each;  one  church  with 
twelve  women  and  no  men ;  one  with  nine  women  and  one 
man.  (None  of  the  circumstances  in  connection  with  these 
churches  are  given.)  A  pastor  from  Sheffield,  Illinois,  writes : 
"  We  are  small— only  1200  people  all  told,  and  800  of  them 
attend  no  church  whatever.  Our  young  men  are  reckless  and 
godless.  They  profane  the  Sabbath  with  ball  games,  bathing 
and  card  parties.  They  have  no  regard  for  Christianity,  and 
we  cannot  get  hold  of  them  by  ordinary  means."  (While 
the  above  statement  is  interesting  and  reveals  a  striking 
condition,  there  is  nothing  definite  about  the  number  of 
young  men  in  the  church  and  out  of  the  church.)  Hudson, 
Illinois,  population  276.  This  town  contains  a  few  young  men 
of  whom  two  are  Christians.  The  pastor  of  the  Methodist 
Church  at  Rock  City,  Illinois,  states  that  he  has  but  one  young 
man  in  his  church  there.  At  Warsaw,  the  pastor  writes: 
"  There  is  scarcely  a  male  member  in  the  churches.  The  city 
is  nearly  all  German,  and  there  is  very  little  religion."  It  is 
possible  to  multiply  such  testimony  indefinitely.  It  should 
be  stated  that  such  testimony  is  of  value,  but  its  general 


The  Problem  Stated.  11 

character  is  unmistakable.  It  is  insufficient  as  a  basis  of 
generalization.  The  fact  that  we  are  compelled  to  show  such 
isolated  incidents  and  fragmentary  testimony  as  an  argument 
for  our  work  would  emphasize,  if  nothing  else,  the  imperative 
need  that  a  scientific  study  be  made  of  the  religious  condition 
of  young  men  in  order  that  our  magnificent  organization  may 
rest  on  facts  and  not  on  theory. 

Another  sort  of  information  has  been  gathered  and  used 
in  much  the  same  way.  Local  statistics  have  been  secured  in 
different  places  on  such  items  as  the  number  of  saloons  and  the 
number  of  young  men  entering  on  certain  days  or  certain 
evenings;  the  number  of  theaters  and  the  attendance  of 
young  men  on  certain  occasions.  A  comparative  study  has 
been  made  of  such  theater  attendance  with  the  attendance  of 
young  men  at  certain  churches  and  statistics  of  billiard  halls 
and  gambling  places  and  houses  of  ill-repute  have  also  been 
obtained.  All  these  as  they  have  been  gathered  have  shed 
light  on  the  temptations  of  young  men  and  the  extent  to 
which  these  temptations  appeal  to  them.  One  of  the  most 
striking,  and  at  the  same  time  one  of  the  most  interesting, 
studies  of  this  sort  revealed  the  following  facts  about  Chicago : 
*"There  are  6320  legalized  saloons;  31,600 men  constitute  the 
working  force  of  these  saloons.  The  estimated  daily  receipts 
amount  to  $316,000. 

11  On  Sunday  evening,  February  26, 1899,  a  careful  count  was 
made  of  the  men  in  a  Madison  street  saloon  at  7  o'clock.  The 
number  was  524,  and  during  the  next  two  hours  480  more  men 
entered.  At  one  of  the  billiard  tables  young  men  six  deep  on 
all  sides  were  engaged  in  open  gambling.  Private  stairways 
connect  this  saloon  with  the  vilest  theater  in  the  city. 

; '  There  are  3000  billiard  and  pool-rooms  in  the  city,  generally 
adjacent  to  or  part  of  a  saloon. 

' '  There  are  thirty-one  theaters  widely  varying  in  character 
and  attractiveness.  The  attendance  of  men  from  about 
fifteen  to  forty-five  years  of  age  at  seventeen  of  these  theaters 
on  Sunday  evening,  February  26th  was  17,160.  This  attend- 
ance in  detail  shows  that  the  larger  audiences  of  men  were 

*Paper  on  "Social  Forcas  in  Action"  by  L.  Wilbur  M>sser,  Chicago,  1900. 


THE 

UNIVERSITY 

OF 


12  The  Religious  Condition  of  Young  Men. 

found  in  the  cheapest  and  most  degrading  places.  The 
Academy  of  Music  leads  the  list  with  2100  men  present.  The 
Haymarket  with  1594;  the  Chicago  Opera  House,  1250;  the 
Dearborn,  1509;  the  Alhambra,  1200;  Hopkins'',  1151;  Sam 
T.  Jack's,  880. 

"Continuing  the  enumeration  of  destructive  forces,  we  must 
add  the  houses  of  ill-repute,  with  their  unfortunate  but  dis- 
reputable inmates.  An  accurate  canvass  of  the  Nineteenth 
ward,  bounded  by  Van  Buren,  Halsted,  Twelfth  streets  and 
the  Chicago  river,  gives  312  such  houses,  with  1708  inmates. 
No  reliable  estimate  of  the  number  in  the  entire  city  can  be 
given.  It  is  believed  that  there  are  at  least  1000  men  in  the 
city  who  make  it  their  business  to  allure  men  to  these  resorts. 
In  the  central  district  of  the  city  it  is  said  that  there  are  600 
men,  known  as  '  degenerates, '  who  ply  their  business  on  the 
streets.  There  are  probably  not  less  than  50,000  men  alone 
directly  engaged  in  public  places  of  resort  commonly  held  to  be 
demoralizing  and  criminal  in  tendency.  It  is  thus  seen  that 
of  the  total  male  population  of  945,868  (according  to  census  of 
1890)  one  out  of  every  nine'.een  is  engaged  in  an  occupation 
which  tends  to  ruin  young  manhood." 

It  is  not  the  purpose  of  this  paper  to  pronounce  such  facts 
valueless.  On  the  other  hand,  they  are  extremely  valuable. 
They  reveal  a  condition  that  is  shocking  in  the  extreme.  They 
show  the  need  of  and  plead  eloquently  for  such  an  organization 
as  our  own.  At  the  same  time  they  are  open  to  criticism  from 
another  standpoint.  Gather  all  the  statistics  we  will  con- 
cerning saloons,  theaters  and  houses  of  ill-fame,  we  are  but 
dealing  with  symptoms.  We  are  not  making  a  study  of 
young  men  themselves  and  their  condition.  Such  informa- 
tion is  good  as  far  as  it  goes.  At  best  it  is  but  superficial.  No 
amount  of  study  of  this  information  will  disclose  such  facts  as 
the  following:  who  these  young  men  are.  their  occupa- 
tions, early  training  and  influence,  whether  they  live  at 
home  or  not,  their  heredity,  environment  and  a  host  of 
other  things  we  must  inquire  about  in  order  to  understand  the 
disease,  of  which  the  things  we  see  on  the  surface  are  but  the 


The  Problem  Stated.  13 

symptoms.  Another  illustration  may  be  in  order.  One 
might  gather  any  amount  of  statistics  as  to  the  number  of 
young  men  who  ride  bicycles  on  Sunday.  The  figures  would 
be  of  little  value  unless  we  knew  more  about  the  young  men. 
This  then  is  the  objection  to  all  this  class  of  information  and 
illustration  which  we  have  quoted  at  length  to  show  the  kind 
of  material  we  have  been  obliged  to  use  as  the  argument  and 
justification  for  our  organization. 

The  second  thing  which  we  stated  should  receive  our  con- 
sideration before  giving  the  description  of  the  work  of  the  club, 
is  a  statement  of  the  kind  and  amount  of  information  we 
ought  to  possess  before  we  can  become  acquainted  with  the 
religious  condition  of  young  men.  We  have  attempted  to  show 
that  what  we  did  know  for  certain  is  limited  in  the  extreme. 
Before  we  can  generalize  as  to  the  religious  condition  of  young 
men,  it  is  clear  that  we  ought  to  have  fresh  and  extensive  data 
on  such  questions  as  the  following: 

1.  The   proportion   of  young  men  of  the  various  com- 
munities who  are  members  of  evangelical  churches. 

2.  The  proportion  of  young  men  attending  church  serv- 
ices. 

3.  The  hold  that  the  Sunday-school  has  upon  young  men. 

4.  Is  the  proportion  of  young  men  who  are  becoming  Chris- 
tians increasing  or  decreasing  year  by  year? 

5.  The  proportion  of  young  men  touched  by  the  association 
in  the  different  communities. 

6.  Any  special  adaptation  of  the  work  of  the  churches  to 
influence  young  men. 

7.  Other  agencies  that   are  helping  to  build  up  young 
men. 

8.  The  principal  temptations  of  young  men. 

9.  The  chief  perils,  agencies,  forces  and  influences  which 
are  hurting  young  men. 

10.  Where  and  how  do  young  men  spend  their  leisure 
time? 

11.  What  books  are  young  men  reading  chiefly? 


14  The  Religious  Condition  of  loung 

It  is  apparent  that  if  statistics  could  be  obtained  on  some 
of  these  points  they  would  throw  direct  light  on  the  subject. 
Information  concerning  other  of  the  points  would  only  serve 
indirectly  to  shed  this  light.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  statistics 
for  the  country,  or  the  states,  or  the  cities,  are  not  obtainable 
with  reference  to  these  points.  Even  the  church  statistics 
give  only  the  gross  membership,  making  no  distinction  be- 
tween males  and  females,  and  furnishing  no  information 
whatever  respecting  classification  according  to  ages. 

In  view  of  this  condition  of  affairs,  the  question  naturally 
arose,  How  can  this  information  be  secured?  Three  diffi- 
culties at  once  suggest  themselves :  First,  if  the  work  is  un- 
dertaken and  carried  through  in  a  given  locality,  the  objec- 
tion might  be  made  that  the  results  are  of  value  only  as  they 
reflect  local  conditions.  Even  if  similar  studies  were  made 
in  different  places,  it  might  also  be  urged  that  the  portion 
covered  would  be  such  a  small  percentage  of  the  territory 
reckoned  as  the  field  of  the  association  that  to  draw  conclusions 
for  the  whole  country  from  such  a  comparatively  small 
amount  of  data  would  not  be  permissible.  The  second  diffi- 
culty would  be  the  lack  of  a  scientific  method  of  procedure. 
The  problem  of  gathering  statistics  and  information  and  the 
legitimate  use  of  the  same,  is  no  mean  one.  The  third  diffi- 
culty would  still  remain  even  if  the  first  two  were  removed, 
viz. :  The  inability  of  local  secretaries  and  directors,  upon 
whom  would  necessarily  devolve  the  labor  of  making  the  local 
study,  to  devote  the  amount  of  time  required.  Answering 
these  objections  and  difficulties  in  their  inverse  order,  it  can 
be  said  with  reference  to  the  last  point,  that  what  must  be 
done  can  be  done.  Time  can  be  taken  and  must  be  taken  to 
do  the  necessary  thing,  and  if  association  work  is  in  that 
stage  where  further  progress  cannot  be  made  until  we  know 
young  men,  the  conclusion  is  inevitable  that  we  must  take  up 
this  task  however  formidable.  With  reference  to  the 
second  objection,  that  a  scientific  method  of  procedure  is 
lacking:  certain  methods  will  be  set  forth  later,  and  re- 
sults will  be  furnished  which  will  illustrate  the  methods  and 


T/ie  Problem  Stated.  15 

testify  as  to  their  value.  Taking  up  the  first  point,  that  it 
is  impossible  to  secure  extensive  enough  information  to  per- 
mit of  wide  generalization,  there  is  much  that  can  be  said. 
In  the  first  place,  the  value  of  what  seems  to  be  a  limited 
amount  of  data  should  not  be  ignored.  The  study  of  any 
particular  question  in  a  local  field  will  frequently  reveal 
striking  agreements  and  marked  tendencies.  This  will  stimu- 
late a  similar  inquiry  in  another  field  for  the  purpose  of  gather- 
ing similar  information  for  purposes  of  comparative  study. 
The  second  study  and  subsequent  studies  in  the  same  line 
will  furnish  results  that  will  correct  and  corroborate  the  re- 
sults of  the  initial  study.  While  at  no  time  is  it  legitimate 
to  make  deductions  wider  than  the  facts  will  permit,  and  the 
conclusions  will  hold  only  in  those  localities  wiiere  the  several 
studies  are  made  or  which  have  the  same  conditions,  never- 
theless -there  are  methods  of  analysis  and  means  of  cross- 
checking by  which  deductions  can  be  made  from  relatively 
few  data  which  will  hold  for  a  much  wider  area  than  that 
in  which  the  original  information  was  secured.  For  example : 
it  is  only  necessary  to  call  attention  to  what  has  been  accom- 
plished by  the  empirical  method  in  certain  psychological 
studies.  Two  books  which  have  recently  been  published  will 
illustrate  the  great  possibilities  in  the  proper  use  of  facts 
properly  secured.  The  first  of  the  volumes  is  THE  PSY- 
CHOLOGY OF  RELIGION,  by  Professor  Starbuck  of  the  Stanford 
University;  the  second,  THE  SPIRITUAL  LIFE,  by  Professor 
Coe,  of  Northwestern  University.  Both  of  these  volumes  are 
of  unquestioned  scientific  value,  are  written  in  popular 
style,  and  should  be  read  and  studied  by  every  person  who  is 
responsible  for  the  religious  interests  of  others. 

It  is  safe  to  say  that  no  more  valuable  contributions  to 
religious  work  have  been  made  than  the  results  of  these  and 
kindred  studies.  The  conclusions  in  Starbuck's  chapters  on 
conversion,  which  stand  the  test  of  scientific  criticism,  ought 
to  be  eagerly  seized  by  all  religious  workers.  Some  of  the 
facts  concerning  young  men  are  exactly  what  the  Young 
Men's  Christian  Association  has  been  waiting  for  many  years, 


16  The  Religious  Condition  of  Young  Men. 

and  ought  to  be  incorporated  in  its  religious  work  without  de- 
lay. A  few  only  of  the  facts  demonstrated  and  practically 
settled  by  Professor  Starbuck  in  his  chapters  on  conversion 
are  here  given: 

First,  Conversion  is  an  adolescent  phenomenon.  In  the 
case  of  males  it  occurs  most  frequently  at  the  age  of  16,  and 
immediately  before  and  after  this  year.  If  conversion  has 
not  occurred  before  20,  the  chances  are  very  small  that  it  will 
ever  be  experienced.  This  conclusion  is  supported  by  the 
studies  of  others,  including  Professor  Coe  and  Dr.  Gulick. 
We  reproduce  a  table  found  on  page  45  of  Professor  Coe's 
book,  showing  the  age  of  conversion,  or  decisive  awakening, 
of  1784  different  men. 

""AGE  OF  CONVERSION    OR    DECISIVE  AWAKENING  OF  MEN. 

Average 
No.  Cases.  Age. 

Graduates  Drew  Seminary 776  16.4 

Y.  M.  C.  A.  Officers 526  16.5 

Starbuck's  Conversions 51  15.7 

Starbuck's  Spontaneous  Awakenings. .  .-.  75  16.3 

Rock  River  M.  E.  Conference    272  16.4 

Coe's  Decisive  Awakenings 84  15.4 


Total    -. 1784  16.4 

Professor  Starbuck  discusses  at  length  the  average  age  of 
males  and  females  at  conversion,  and  also  the  difference  be- 
tween revival  and  non-revival  cases  in  this  respect.  He 
also  shows  and  discusses  the  relation  of  the  age  of  conversion 
to  the  accession  to  puberty  and  the  period  of  greatest 
physical  and  mental  development. 

Second,  In  his  chapter  onu  Motives  Leading  to  Conversion, ' ' 
he  shows  the  percentage  of  males  of  a  given  number  exam- 
ined whose  conversion  was  brought  about  by  each  of  the  fol- 
lowing motives  and  forces : 

1.  Fear  of  death,  or  hell. 

2.  Other  self-regarding  motives. 

*This  list  has  been  subsequent!}' increased  to  include  4000  cases,  with  practically 
no  variation  in  the  average  age. 


The  Problem  Stated.  17 

3.  Altruistic  motives. 

4.  Following  out  a  moral  ideal. 

5.  Remorse  or  conviction  for  sin,  etc. 

6.  Response  to  teaching. 

7.  Example,  imitation,  etc. 

8.  Social  pressure,  urging,  etc. 

While  we  are  not  able  to  present  a  chart  of  this  table,  it  is 
interesting  to  note  that  the  largest  percentage  of  males  is  im- 
pelled to  conversion  by  the  motive  of  following  out  a  moral 
idea).  Almost  as  great  a  number  are  moved  by  remorse  and 
conviction  for  sin.  The  next,  by  social  pressure,  urging,  etc. 
This  whole  chapter  is  in  fact  an  excellent  argument  in  favor 
of  personal  work. 

Third,  In  the  chapter  on  "Experiences  Preceding  Con- 
version," out  of  a  list  of  seventeen  experiences  such  as  sense 
of  sin,  feeling  of  estrangement  from  God,  the  desire  for  a 
better  life,  etc.,  the  following  is  full  of  interest: 

Thirty-three  per  cent  of  the  males  experience  a  sense  of 
sin,  while  60  per  cent  experience  a  feeling  of  depression 
and  sadness.  The  difference  between  males  and  females  in 
this  regard,  and  the  difference  between  revival  and  non- 
revival  methods,  are  clearly  brought  out. 

Fourth,  Chapter  IV  deals  with  the  mental  and  bodily 
affections  immediately  accompanying  conversion.  Much  of 
this  chapter  is  devoted  to  a  comparison  of  sexes  in 
emotional  experience.  Professor  Coe  's  book  is  quoted  freely  in 
connection  with  a  discussion  of  the  temperamental  differences 
between  men  and  women.  It  is  in  a  study  of  temperament 
that  Professor  Coe  has  probably  made  his  greatest  contribution 
to  the  Psychology  of  Religion.  The  principal  difference  ap- 
pears to  be,  that  with  men  the  intellect  is  more  prominent, 
hence  there  are  more  theoretical  doubts;  while  with  women 
sensibility  is  more  prominent,  hence  there  are  more  doubts  of 
personal  status.  Man's  emotion  is  fixed  on  definite  objects 
and  at  definite  periods,  hence  more  turbulence.  Woman's 
emotion  is  more  constant,  more  diffused,  more  gentle ;  men  are 
less  suggestible,  resist  more,  have  more  intense  struggle  and 


18  The  Religious  Condition  of  Young  Men. 

less  fulfilment  of  expectation,  attain  more  in  solitude ;  women 
are  more  suggestible,  hence  yield  more  readily  to  ordinary 
influences,  attain  less  in  solitude,  have  less  intense  struggle  and 
more  fulfilment  of  expectation. 

Succeeding  chapters  are  devoted  to  a  treatment  of  such 
subjects  as: 

(a)     In  what  Conversion  Consists. 

(6)     Conscious  and  Sub-Conscious  Elements  in  Conversion. 

(c)  Feeling  following  Conversion. 

(d)  The  Character  of  the  New  Life. 

(e)  Conversion  as  a  Normal  Human  Experience. 
(/)     Abnormal  Aspects  of  Conversion. 

It  would  transcend  the  limits  of  this  occasion  to  suggest 
further,  even  the  titles  of  the  subject-matter  of  this  volume. 
If  this  reference  to  it  will  result  in  new  readers  of  the  book 
a  principal  aim  will  be  accomplished. 

It  is  possible  to  mention  here  only  the  chapter  heads  of  Pro- 
fessor Coe's  valuable  and  timely  book  on  the  "Spiritual  Life. " 
It  consists  of  five  studies,  as  follows : 

(1)  A  Study  of  Religious  Awakening. 

(2)  A  Study  of  Some  Adolescent  Difficulties. 

(3)  A  Study  of  Religious  Dynamics. 

(4)  A  Study  of  Divine  Healing. 

(5)  A  Study  of  Spirituality. 

Professor  Coe  corroborates  and  emphasizes  the  results  of 
Professor  Starbuck  's  study,  and  also  the  work  of  Dr.  Gulick  on 
"  Sex  and  Religion. "  In  addition,  he  contributes  much  that 
is  new  and  valuable  directly  on  the  line  of  our  discussion. 
In  another  place  in  this  paper  we  make  reference  to  his  expla- 
nation of  the  disproportion  of  males  to  females  in  the  church 
membership  and  in  attendance  at  the  church  services. 


CHAPTER   II. 

A    STATISTICAL   BACKGROUND. 

RECOGNIZING  the  lack  of  definite  character  of  our  pre- 
vious knowledge  concerning  young  men,  appreciating 
the  value  of  the  methods  by  which  the  contributions  of 
Starbuck,  Coe,  and  others  were  made,  and  realizing  the  many 
things  we  must  still  learn  about  young  men,  the  club  under- 
took the  task  of  devising  methods  whereby  some  of  the  in- 
formation might  be  secured.     The  results,  so  far  as  they  have 
been  obtained,  will  serve  to  illustrate  the  methods  and  bear 
testimony  to  their  value.     The  following  lines  of  investigation 
were  inaugurated : 

(1)  A  comparative,  statistical  study  of '  the   association 
membership  at  large  with  the  field  of  the  association  in  the 
United  States. 

(2)  A  similar  study  with  reference  to  the  State  of  Illinois. 

(3)  A  complete  study  of  the  field  in  Chicago  compared  with 
the  membership  of  the  Central  Department. 

(4)  A  church  investigation. 

(5)  A  detailed  study  of  a  group  of  seventy-two  Central 
Department  members. 

Proceeding  now  to  the  first  study  [page  20]:  In  the 
United  States,  according  to  the  census  of  1890,  out  of  a  total 
of  28,206,332  white  males,  28  per  cent  were  under  12  years 
of  age,  9  per  cent  between  12  and  15 ,  46  per  cent  between  16 
and  44,  and  17  percent  45  years  of  age  and  over.  In  Illinois, 
according  to  the  same  census,  out  of  a  total  of  1,941,376,  28 
per  cent  were  under  12,  8  per  cent  between  12  and  15,  48  per 
cent  between  16  and  44,  and  16  per  cent  over  44.  In  the 
city  of  Chicago  at  the  present  time,  according  to  the  school 
census,  out  of  a  total  of  559,900  white  males,  26  per  cent  are 
under  12,  7  per  cent  between  12  and  15,  53  per  cent  between 
16  and  44,  and  14  per  cent  45  years  of  age  and  over.  These 
statistics  have  been  charted  for  the  purpose  of  making  a 
comparative  study. 


MALES 

BY 
AGE     GROUPS 


D 


0  -  II  12-15  16-44  45  - 


UNITED  STATES 
28,206,332 


ILLINOIS 
1,941,376 


CHICAGO 
559,900 


28% 


46% 


17% 


28%  Q% 


48% 


16%. 


26% 


53% 


14% 


CENSUS   OF  1890 


Prepared  by  G.  W.  Ehler 


•20 


WHITE    MALES 
AGE    12-15 


FOREIGN 
BORN 


NATIVE  BORN 
FOREIGN  PARENTS 


NATIVE  BORN 
NATIVE  PARENTS 


UNITED  STATES 
2,385,644 


ILLINOIS 
157,749 


CHICAGO  1890 
38,930 


CHICAGO  1898 
67,118 


1 1  %  24% 


65% 


39% 


50% 


25% 


58% 


17% 


Prepared  by  G.  W.  Ehler. 


21 


22  The  Religious  Condition  of  Young  Men. 

Classified  according*  to  nativity  [page  21],  we  find  in  the 
United  States  in  1890,  that  of  all  the  white  males  between  12 
and  15, 11  per  cent  were  foreign  born,  24  per  cent  of  foreign 
parents*,  and  65  per  cent  of  native  parents.  In  Illinois,  in 
1890,  11  per  cent  were  foreign  born,  39  per  cent  of  foreign 
parents  and  50  per  cent  of  native  parents.  In  Chicago,  in 
1890,  25  per  cent  of  the  same  group  were  foreign  born,  58 
per  cent  of  foreign  parents,  and  only  17  per  cent  of  native 
parents.  An  interesting  change  is  to  be  noted  with  reference 
to  Chicago  since  1890,  for,  in  1898,  19  per  cent  were  foreign 
born,  61  per  cent  of  foreign  parents,  and  20  per  cent  of  native 
parents.  The  classification  of  Central  Department  Juniors 
according  to  nativity  has  not  been  secured. 

Turning  now  to  the  white  males  [page  23],  between  16  and  44 
in  the  United  States  in  1890,  22  per  cent  were  foreign  born, 
20  per  cent  of  foreign  parents,  and  58  per  cent  of  native  par- 
ents. In  the  State  of  Illinois  at  the  same  time,  29  per 
cent  were  foreign  born,  25  per  cent  of  foreign  parents  and  46 
per  cent  of  native  parents.  In  Chicago  we  notice  a  marked 
difference :  53  per  cent  were  foreign  born,  26  per  cent  of 
foreign  parents,  and  only  21  per  cent  of  native  parents. 
This  was  in  1890.  A  somewhat  different  condition  obtained 
in  1898 :  42  per  cent  were  foreign  born,  30  per  cent  of  foreign 
parents,  and  28  per  cent  native  born. 

Classifying  the  membership  of  the  Central  Department 
according  to  the  nativity  of  844  members  who  took  the 
physical  examinations  between  January,  1899,  and  May,  1900, 
we  find  that  24  per  cent  were  foreign  born,  38  per  cent  of 
foreign  parents,  and  38  per  cent  of  native  parents.  This  is 
of  value  in  showing  the  comparison  by  nativity  of  the  asso- 
ciation membership  with  all  the  young  men  of  the  city  who 
constitute  the  field  of  the  association. 

We  will  now  proceed  to  make  a  similar  study  of  the  white 
male  workers  ten  years  of  age  and  over  in  the  United  States, 
in  the  State  of  Illinois,  and  in  the  city  of  Chicago,  respectively. 
The  accompanying  chart  [page  24]  shows  that  in  the  United 

*  "  Of  foreign  parents  "  means  all  native  born  with  one  or  both  parents  foreign  born 


WHITE  MALES 
AGE   16-44 


FOREIGN 
BORN 


NATIVE  BORN 
FOREIGN  PARENTS 


NATIVE  BORN 
NATIVE  PARENTS 


UNITED  STATES 
12,940,759 


ILLINOIS 
914,522 


CHICAGO,  '90 
295,880 


CHICAGO,  '98 
456,946 


CENTRAL  DEPT. 
844 


22% 


29% 


20% 


53% 


58% 


46% 


42% 


26% 


21% 


30% 


28% 


38% 


Prepared  by  G.  W.  Ehler. 


23 


WHITE   MALE 
WORKERS 

10  YEARS  AND  OVER 


AGRICULTURE 


SKILLED  LABOR  •  PROFESSIONAL 


UNSKILLED  LABOR  I  MERCANTILE 


UNITED  STATES 
16,603,147 


38% 


ILLINOIS 
1,133,235 


36% 


18%  23%       .        19% 


CHICAGO 
363,200 


12%  24% 

#  UNCLASSIFIED 


Prepared  by  G.  W.  Ehler. 


24 


A  Statistical  Background.  25 

States  out  of  16,603,147  such  workers  38  per  cent  were 
agriculturists,  12  per  cent  unskilled  laborers,  25  per  cent 
skilled  laborers,  20  per  cent  engaged  in  mercantile  pursuits, 
and  5  percent  professional.  In  Illinois,  out  of  1,133,235,  36 
per  cent  were  agriculturists,  18  per  cent  unskilled  laborers, 

23  per  cent  skilled  laborers,  19  per  cent  mercantile,  and  4  per 
cent  professional.     In  Chicago,  out  of  363,200,  12  per  cent 
were  unclassified,  24  per  cent  unskilled  laborers,  38  per  cent 
skilled,  24  per  cent  mercantile,  and  2  per  cent  professional. 

The  next  chart  [page  26]  is  a  similar  classification  by  occu- 
pation of  white  male  workers  ten  years  of  age  and  over,  ex- 
cepting the  agriculturists.  This  exception  is  made  because 
we  are  studying  the  field  of  the  city  and  town  associations.  It 
is  certainly  unfair  to  include  the  agricultural  males  as  the  legit- 
imate field  of  the  city  and  town  associations.  The  chart  we 
have  just  left  furnishes  no  small  amount1  of  argument  for  a 
coming  department  of  association  work,  viz. :  county  work. 

Out  of  10,279,889  white  male  workers  in  the  United  States, 
20  per  cent  were  unskilled  laborers,  40  per- cent  skilled,  32  per 
cent  mercantile,  and  8  per  cent  professional.  In  Illinois,  out 
of  725,999,  28  per  cent  were  unskilled,  36  per  cent  skilled,  30 
per  cent  mercantile  and  6  per  cent  professional. 

Reproducing  the  figures  concerning  Chicago  from  the  last 
chart,  we  find  no  agriculturists  a|id  an  unclassified  per- 
centage of  12,  24  per  cent  unskilled,  38  per  cent  skilled, 

24  per  cent    mercantile  and  2  per"  cent    professional.     It 
is  now  a  matter  of  interest  to  compare  Chicago  with  the  Central 
Department  membership  classified,  by  occupations.     Out  of 
3838  members  so  classified,  7  per  cent  come  under  the  un- 
classified   head,   2  per  cent  unskilled   laborers,  10  per  cent 
skilled,  66  per  cent  mercantile  and  15  per  cent  professional. 
The  extent  to  which  the  Central  Department  appeals  to  those 
engaged  in  mercantile  and  professional  occupations  is  largely 
due  to  the  location  of  the  building  in  the  downtown  district. 
The  showing  for  the  entire  Chicago  association',  with  its  nine 
departments,  would  doubtless  be  considerably  different,  as 
also  in  most  other  cities. 


WHITE     MALE    WORKERS 
10  YEARS  OF  AGE  AND  OVER 
BY    OCCUPATIONS 

(EXCEPTING    AGRICULTURISTS) 


UNCLASSIFIED 


SKILLED  LABOR 


PROFESSIONAL 


UNSKILLED  LABOR 


MERCANTILE 


UNITED  STATES 
10,279,889 


ILLINOIS 
725,999 


CHICAGO 
363,200 


CENTRAL  DEPT. 
3,838 


20% 


28% 


40  r° 


36% 


32%  8% 


30%  6% 


Prepared  by  G.  W.  Ehler. 


26 


A  Statistical  Background.  27 

Our  next  chart  [page  28]  classifies  the  above  males,  again 
excepting  agriculturists,  by  nativity.  In  the  United  States, 
33  per  cent  of  this  class  were  foreign  born,  13  per  cent  of 
foreign  parents  and  54  percent  of  native  parents.  In  Illinois, 
of  this  class  43  per  cent  were  foreign  born,  21  per  cent  of  foreign 
parents,  and  36  per  cent  of  native  parents.  In  Chicago,  of 
this  class  58  per  cent  were  foreign  born,  22  per  cent  of 
foreign  parents  and  only  20  per  cent  of  native  parents. 

Taking  the  percentages  of  the  Central  Department  members 
from  a  previous  chart  [page  23],  we  found  24  per  cent 
foreign  born,  38  per  cent  of  foreign  parents  and  38  per 
cent  of  native  parents.  It  is,  therefore,  obvious  that  the  prob- 
lem before  the  Chicago  association  is  somewhat  different  from 
the  general  problem  in  Illinois  and  the  problem  of  the  country. 
Such  local  facts  are  of  tremendous  significance,  and  the  knowl- 
edge of  them  is  important,  because  in  view  of  such  circum- 
stances methods  must  be  worked  out  by  which  the  religious 
condition  of  this  great  body  of  men  can  be  improved. 

Classifying  now  the  white  male  workers  in  Chicago  with 
reference  to  occupations  [page  29],  we  find  that  of  the  total 
number  363,200,  12  per  cent  were  unclassified,  24  per  cent 
were  unskilled  laborers,  38  per  cent  skilled,  24  per  cent  mercan- 
tile, and  2  per  cent  professional.  Classifying  the  native  born 
of  native  parents,  of  whom  there  are  73,988,  we  find  that  12  per 
cent  were  unclassified,  15  per  cent  were  unskilled  laborers,  28 
per  cent  skilled,  40  per  cent  mercantile,  and  5  per  cent 
professional.  Out  of  80,614  native  born  of  foreign  parents, 
14  per  cent  were  unclassified,  19  per  cent  unskilled  laborers, 
36  per  cent  skilled,  28  per  cent  mercantile,  and  3  per  cent  pro- 
fessional. Uniting  these  last  two  groups  into  a  single  group  of 
native  born,  we  find  13  per  cent  unclassified,  17  per  cent 
unskilled,  32  per  cent  skilled,  34  per  cent  mercantile  and  4 
per  cent  professional.  Coming  to  the  foreign  born,  of  whom 
there  are  208,598  in  Chicago,  we  notice  11  per  cent  unclassi- 
fied, 30  per  cent  unskilled,  41  per  cent  skilled,  17  per  cent 
mercantile  and  1  per  cent  professional. 


WHITE    MALE 
WORKERS 

EXCEPT     AGRICULTURISTS 
BY    NATIVITIES 


FOREIGN 
BORN 


NATIVE  BORN 
FOREIGN  PARENTS 


NATIVE  BORN 
NATIVE  PARENTS 


UNITED  STATES 
10,279,889 


33%  13% 


54% 


ILLINOIS 
725,999 


43% 


21% 


36% 


CHICAGO 
363,200 


22%  20% 


Prepared  by  G.  W.  Ehler. 


28 


WHITE  MALE 
WORKERS 

CHICAGO 


UNCLASSIFIED 


SKILLED  LABOR 


PROFESSIONAL 


UNSKILLED  LABOR 


ALL 

363,200 


NATIVE  BORN 

NATIVE  PAR. 

73,988 


NATIVE  BORN 

FOREIGN  PAR. 

80,614 


NATIVE  BORN 
154,602 


FOREIGN  BORN 
208,598 


MERCANTILE 


11% 


30% 


17%     1% 


Prepared  by  G.  W.  Ehler. 


29 


30  The  Religious  Condition  of  Young  Men. 

We  will  now  classify  as  to  nativity  [page  31]  the  members 
of  the  group  of  white  male  workers  in  Chicago,  engaged  in 
different  occupations. 

As  we  found  from  a  previous  chart,  58  per  cent  of 
a  total  of  363,200  were  foreign  born,  22  per  cent  of  foreign 
parents  and  20  per  cent  native  born.  We  now  find  that  of 
8348  professional  men  34  per  cent  were  foreign  born,  21  per 
cent  of  foreign  parents  and  45  per  cent  native  born.  Of 
87,898  mercantile,  40  per  cent  were  foreign  born,  26  per  cent 
of  foreign  parents,  and  34  per  cent  native  born.  Of  135,987 
skilled  laborers  63  per  cent  were  foreign  born,  22  per  cent  of 
foreign  parents  and  15  per  cent  native  born.  Of  88,459  un- 
skilled laborers  70  per  cent  were  foreign  born,  17  per  cent  of 
foreign  parents  and  13  per  cent  native  born.  Of  42,508  un- 
classified laborers,  51  per  cent  were  foreign  born,  27  per  cent 
of  foreign  parents  and  22  per  cent  native  born. 

Let  us  now  compare  [page  32]  the  association  membership  at 
large  with  the  number  of  white  males  between  16  and  44  years 
of  age.  .  According  to  the  Year  Book  of  1900,  in  500  cities  and 
towns  of  the  United  States  where  we  have  associations,there  is 
a  total  of  6,119,646  males  between  the  ages  of  16  and 
44.  In  these  500  associations  there  is  a  membership 
of  169,299,  or  3  per  cent  of  the  total.  In  forty-eight  towns 
of  Illinois  there  are  632,375  males  between  16  and  44. 
The  number  of  members  of  the  association  in  these 
towns  is  14,076  or  2  per  cent  of  the  total.  In  Chicago,  as 
previously  shown,  there  are  456,946  males  between  16 
and  44,  and  in  the  four  Chicago  city  departments  a  total 
membership  of  4721,  or  a  proportion  of  1  per  cent  of  the 
total. 


WHITE   MALE 
WORKERS 

CHICAGO 


FOREIGN 
BORN 


NATIVE  BORN 
FOREIGN  PARENTS 


NATIVE  BORN 
NATIVE  PARENTS 


ALL 

363,200 


PROFESSIONAL 
8,348 


MERCANTILE 
87,898 


SKILLED 
135,987 


UNSKILLED 
88,459 


UNCLASSIFIED 

42,508 


34% 


40% 


21% 


45% 


2Q% 


34% 


63% 


22%  15%" 


70% 


17%  13% 


51% 


27% 


22% 


Prepared  by  G.  W.  Ehler. 


31 


WHITE   MALES 

AGES  16-44 

AND  ASSOCIATION  MEMBERS 
CITY  AND  TOWN  SENIORS 


500  AMERICAN  CITIES  AND  TOWNS 

MALES  -16-44,     6,119,646          MEMBERS   169,299 


1 


97%  3% 

48  ILLINOIS  CITIES  AND  TOWNS 

MALES  -16-44,     632,375  MEMBERS    14,076 


J 


98%  2% 

4  CHICAGO    DEPARTMENTS 

MALES  -16-44,    456,946  MEMBERS     4,721 


Prepared  by  G.  W.  Ehler.  32 


CHAPTER  III. 

MEMBERSHIP   CLASSIFICATION. 

LET  us  now  turn  our  attention  to  the  classification  of  the 
Central  Department  membership.*  It  is  a  very  simple 
matter  to  secure  from  the  application  blanks  certain 
facts  about  the  members;  as,  for  example,  age,  occupation 
and  nationality.  When,  however,  it  is  desired  to  make  a 
comparative  study  of  one  group  with  another  with  reference 
to  any  point,  the  problem  becomes  more  complex.  In  order 
to  tabulate  the  facts  concerning  each  individual,  it  is  necessary 
to  have  a  system  for  bringing  like  facts  together  without  losing 
the  identity  of  the  individual.  A  comprehensive  blank  was 
devised  whereby  the  following  information  respecting  each 
member  could  be  indicated:  age,  kind  of  membership — regu- 
lar or  special,  original  or  renewal — nationality,  occupation, 
church  attendance,  preference,  and  membership  and  privileges 
for  the  sake  of  which  the  individual  joined  the  asso- 
ciation. 

When  the  work  of  tabulation  was  completed  and 
all  the  totals  brought  down,  practically  everything  of 
interest  concerning  the  membership  either  presented  itself  or 
could  be  readily  ascertained.  Some  of  the  interesting  data 
with  reference  to  3838  members  of  the  Central  Department 
thus  classified  are  here  presented,  and  some  of  the  additional 
studies,  which  under  this  plan  can  be  prosecuted  at  will,  are 
also  indicated. 

First,  total  membership  by  ages  [page  35]: 


*A  description  is  given  in  the  appendix  of  an  improved  system  for  tabulating  mem* 
bership  information.  It  is  an  outgrowth  of  the  one  used  ia  the  pre»eut  study  and  an 
illustration  of  the  practical  value  of  the  study. 


34  The  Religious  Condition  of  Young  Men. 

Age.  Number. 

16   228 

17 , « 214 

18   208 

19   ....,.,. 237 

20 247 

21 254 

22 271 

23 227 

24 212 

25-29 679 

30-34 421 

35-39 232 

40  and  over 255 

Unclassified  .  153 


Total 3838 

The  average  age  is  25  years  and  3  months.  The  highest 
number  is  at  age  22. 

Second.  Classification  by  occupation  [page  36]:  this  in- 
formation was  used  in  the  preceding  statistical  study  in  the 
percentage  form.  Of  3838  members,  2517  are  mercantile, 
402  skilled  laborers,  557  professional,  71  unskilled  laborers, 
and 291  unclassified.  In  this  chart  mercantile  includes  clerks 
and  managers.  Professional  includes  professional  men  and 
students. 

Third.  Classification  according  to  nationality:  this  in- 
formation is  not  specially  valuable  in  regard  to  the  Central 
Department,  for  there  are  no  statistics  with  regard  to  the 
native  born  of  foreign  parents,  the  majority  of  such  indica- 
ting their  nationality  as  Americans.  According  to  the  mem- 
bership applications  77  per  cent  were  American,  20  per  cent 
foreign  born,  and  3  per  cent  miscellaneous.  Among  the  for- 
eign born  are  Englishmen,  Scotchmen,  Irishmen,  Canadians, 
Germans  and  Scandinavians. 


NUMBER   OF 
ASSOCIATION    MEMBERS 

(JAN.  i,  1899     TO    MAY  i,  1900) 

BY    AGES 


100 


200 


300 


Prepared  by  W.  M.  Wood. 


35 


OCCUPATIONS 

OF    ASSOCIATION 

MEMBERS 


Prepared  hy  W.  M.  Wood. 


Membership  Classification.  37 

Fourth.  The  classification  by  denominations,  showing 
churches  attended  by  members,  churches  stated  as  preferred, 
and  church  membership:  two  thousand  six  hundred  and 
two,  or  67  per  cent  of  the  whole,  indicated  a  church  attend- 
ance; 2461,  or  63  per  cent  indicated  a  church  preference,  while 
only  1700,  or  44  per  cent,  claim  membership  in  churches. 
The  denominational  differences  may  be  seen  on  chart  [page 
38]  with  reference  to  the  items  of  attendance,  preference  and 
membership.  Out  of  numerous  most  interesting  things 
which  might  be  mentioned,  attention  is  called  to  but  two 
striking  facts,  as  follows:  the  church  having  the  largest 
number  of  members  in  the  Central  Department  is  the  Catholic ; 
and  second,  139  Hebrews  belong  to  the  Central  Department. 

The  next  chart  [page  39]  shows  (A)  that  57  per  cent  of  the 
total  membership  attend  evangelical  churches,  10  per  cent 
non-evangelical  churches,  while  32  per  cent  do  not  attend  any 
church. 

It  also  shows  (B)  that  52  per  cent  prefer  evangelical  de- 
nominations, 11  per  cent  prefer  non-evangelical  denomina- 
tions, and  36  per  cent  express  no  denominational  preference. 

It  also  shows  (C)  that  only  33  per  cent  are  members  of  evan- 
gelical churches,  10  per  cent  of  non-evangelical  churches, 
while  55  per  cent  are  not  church  members. 

We  have  not  charted  the  percentage  of  church  mem- 
bership, preference  and  attendance  of  the  entire  Central 
Department  membership  at  different  ages.  The  most  inter- 
esting thing  thus  revealed  would  be  that  at  16  we  see  the 
highest  percentage  of  church  attendance,  which  suffers  a 
gradual  decrease  as  the  members  advance  in  age,  reaching 
its  lowest  point  among  the  class  between  35  and  40  years  of 
age. 

The  chart  [page  40]  shows  the  relative  drawing  power  of 
the  different  association  privileges.  We  find  that  42  per  cent 
of  the  total  membership  j  oined  for  the  privileges  of  the  Phys- 
ical Department,  19  per  cent  for  the  Educational  Depart- 
ment, 14  per  cent  for  the  general  privileges,  1.3  per  cent  for 
the  social  privileges,  21  per  cent  unstated,  while  those  who 


CHURCH 

ATTENDANCE    (A),          PREFERENCE    (B), 
AND    MEMBERSHIP    (C),  OF 

ASSOCIATION    MEMBERS 

BY     DENOMINATIONS 

(A) 


2%    3%    4% 


6%    7%    8% 


METHODIST 

PRESBYTERIAN 

CONGREGATIONAL 

EPISCOPALIAN 

BAPTIST 

CATHOLIC 

LUTHERAN 

MISC.    EVANGELICAL 

HEBREW 

CHRISTIAN 

UNIVERSALIST 

UNITARIAN 

MISC.   NON  -  EVAN. 


(B) 


METHODIST 

PRESBYTERIAN 

CONGREGATIONAL 

EPISCOPALIAN 

BAPTIST 

CATHOLIC 

LUTHERAN 

MISC.   EVANGELICAL 

HEBREW 

CHRISTIAN 

UNIVERSALIST 

UNITARIAN 

MISC.    NON-EVAN. 


(C) 


METHODIST 

PRESBYTERIAN 

CONGREGATIONAL 

EPISCOPALIAN 

BAPTIST 

CATHOLIC 

LUTHERAN 

MISC.   EVANGELICAL 

HEBREW 

CHRISTIAN 

UNIVERSALIST 

UNITARIAN 

MISC.   NON  -  EVAN. 


Prepared  by  W.  M.  Wood. 


38 


EVANGELICAL   AND 
NON- EVANGELICAL  CHURCH 
ATTENDANCE  (A),  PREFERENCE  (B) 

AND   MEMBERSHIP  (C),  OF 
ASSOCIATION    MEMBERS 


Prepared  by  W.  M.  Wood. 


39 


SPECIAL  PRIVILEGES 

FOR  WHICH  MEMBERS 
JOINED  THE 

ASSOCIATION 


SOCIAL    DEPARTMENT  1.3% 


25%   RELIGIOUS    DEPARTMENT 


Prepared  by  W.  M.  Wood. 


40 


Membership  Classification.  41 

stated  that  they  joined  for  the  religious  privileges  of  the 
association  amount  to  1/4  of  1  per  cent  only. 

A  hasty  conclusion  with  reference  to  the  small  number 
who  say  they  join  for  religious  privileges  might  lead  some  to 
misjudge  the  association  as  a  religious  institution  This 
last  chart  is,  in  reality,  an  unanswerable  argument  for  the 
use  of  the  so-called  secular  agencies,  all  of  which,  it  is  be- 
lieved, contribute  to  the  all-around  development  of  young 
men. 

The  next  chart  [page  42]  is  a  somewhat  intricate 
one,  but  presenting  a  most  interesting  study,  which  indicates 
the  proportion  of  members  engaged  in  different  occupations 
at  different  ages.  For  instance :  at  16  years  of  age,  54  per  cent 
of  the  entire  membership  are  clerks.  This  proportion  in- 
creases rapidly  until  19  years  of  age,  when  78  per  cent  of  the 
entire  membership  are  engaged  in  clerical  occupations.  It 
then  maintains  a  uniform  proportion  up  to  24  years  of  age, 
and  falls  rapidly  after  that.  The  other  occupations  are  not  very 
well  represented  during  the  earlier  years,  and  are  rather  uni- 
form until  we  reach  the  age  of  25,  when  we  find  that  man- 
agers increase  in  rapid  proportion,  the  professional  men  are 
on  the  increase,  while  the  skilled  laborers  fall  away,  and  the 
students  and  unskilled  laborers  are  practically  unrepre- 
sented. 

The  chart  [page  43]  has  been  prepared  to  show  the  rel- 
ative number  of  new  and  old  members  in  the  membership  at 
each  age  for  1899.  Beginning  at  16  we  find  149  new  members 
to  18  old.  The  difference  grows  gradually  less  with  one 
exception  until  about  the  age  of  22,  when  we  find  for  the 
first  time  an  excess  of  renewals  to  new  members,  there  be- 
ing 109  renewals  to  98  originals.  The  chart  shows 
that  after  23,  when  they  are  about  the  same,  the  re- 
newals are  constantly  greater  in  number  than  the  originals  at 
each  successive  year.  According  to  this  chart,  therefore, 
over  one-half  of  the  members  beyond  23  years  of  age  are  old 
members,  while  it  is  the  young  men  from  16  to  19  who  do  not 


DIFFERENT   OCCUPATIONS 

AT  DIFFERENT  AGES 
ASSOCIATION    MEMBERS 


-SKILLED  LABORERS 
•  •UNSKILLED  LABORERS 


'  PROFESSIONAL  MEN 
•STUDENTS 


-MANAGERS 
•-CLERKS 


%      10      20     30     40      50     60     70     80     90     100 


16  YEARS 


Prepared  by  W.  M.  Wood. 


42 


NUMBER    OF   MEMBERS 

BY    AGES 

YEAR   1899 


RENEWALS         ORIGINALS          TOTALS 

20  40  60  80  100  120  140  160  180  200 


16  YEARS 

17  - 

18  - 

19  - 

20  - 

21  - 

22  - 

23  - 

24  - 
-25  •  29  - 

30  -  34  • 

35  -  39  - 

40  A,  OVER 


/ 


7 


X 


Prepared  by  W.  M.  Wood, 


44  The  Religious  Condition  of  Young  Men. 

renew  their  tickets.     These  results  are  suggestive  in  the  ex- 
treme. 

These  are  all  the  studies  that  have  been  made  thus  far. 
Information  is  in  such  shape  that  the  following  comparative 
studies  can  easily  be  made  and  will  be  made  in  the  near 
future : 

(1)  Study  of  privileges  used  by  members  of  different 
ages. 

(2)  Study  of  denominations  by  ages. 

(3)  Study  of  nationalities  by  ages. 

(4)  A  comparative  study  of  originals  and  renewals  with 
reference  to  privileges  used. 

(5)  A  comparative  study  of  originals  and  renewals  with 
reference  to  church  membership. 

(6)  A  comparative  study  of  denominations  and  privileges 
used. 

(7)  A  comparative  study  of  nationalities  and  privileges 
used. 

(8)  A  comparative  study   of  occupations  and  privileges 
used. 

(9)  A  comparative  study  of  denominations  and  occupa- 
tions. 

We  have  not  taken  time  to  indicate  the  value  of  each  of 
these  successive  studies.  It  must  certainly  be  apparent  that 
it  is  possible  to  become  thoroughly  acquainted  with  the 
membership  in  this  way,  and  that  such  acquaintance  ought 
to  help  in  the  use  of  those  methods  of  work  which  will 
reach  the  young  men  of  the  community.  It  may  be  said 
in  passing,  that  while  the  work  of  making  this  study  for 
3838  members  was  not  small,  in  a  medium  sized  member- 
ship it  would  be  comparatively  easy. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

CHURCH   INVESTIGATION. 

rT^ HE  next  direction  in  which  the  club  extended  its  inves- 

j  tigations  was  in  connection  with  the  churches.  A 
church  inquiry  blank  was  prepared  for  the  purpose  of 
securing  from  individual  churches  as  much  of  the  following 
information  as  possible : 

First.     The  number  of  members  living: 

(a)     Within  a  mile. 

(6)     Farther  than  a  mile. 

Second.  The  proportion  of  male  to  female  members  at 
the  present  time,  five  years  ago,  and  ten  years  ago. 

Third.  The  proportion  of  males  to  females  in  yearly 
accessions  by  letter  and  on  confession  since  1890. 

Fourth .  The  classification  of  male  members  as  to  occupa- 
tion as  follows:  professional,  mercantile,  skilled  laborers, 
unskilled  laborers,  unclassified. 

Fifth.  The  proportion  of  men  to  women  holding  office 
in  young  people's  society. 

Sixth.  The  proportion  of  men  to  women  leading  young 
people  's  meetings  during  preceding  quarter. 

Seventh.  The  proportion  of  men  to  women  teachers  in 
Sunday-school. 

Eighth .  Number  of  members  in  special  clubs,  such  as  Boys ' 
Brigade,  Young  Men's  League,  Men's  Club,  St.  Andrew's 
Brotherhood,  etc. 

The  purpose  of  securing  the  above  information  is  obvious 
and  need  not  be  further  dwelt  upon.  In  addition,  the  blank 
also  called  for  the  classification  of  the  male  membership  in  the 
church,  the  young  people 's  society  and  Sunday-school  under 
the  following  divisions :  number  under  16,  number  between  16 
and  40,  number  over  40.  Provision  was  also  made  for  taking 
a  census  of  the  attendance  for  four  consecutive  weeks  at  the 
morning  and  evening  service,  the  weekly  prayer-meeting, 


46  The  Religious  Condition  of  Young  Men. 

young  people 's  meeting  and  Sunday-school,  and  for  the  same 
age  classification  of  the  males  as  was  made  in  connection  with 
the  membership.  It  is  difficult  to  appreciate  the  amount  of 
labor  involved  in  securing  this  information  even  from  one  small 
church.  While  no  information  was  asked  for  that  should  not 
be  at  once  accessible  from  church  records,  and  only  such 
things  were  asked  for  as  every  pastor  of  a  church  ought  to 
know,  at  the  same  time  it  was  expected  that  in  the  majority 
of  cases  church  records  would  not  be  in  such  condition  as  that 
even  this  information  could  be  secured.  In  this  respect  we 
were  not  disappointed.  It  was  also  realized  that  the  persons 
detailed  to  make  the  investigation  would  not  give  the  amount 
of  time  required  to  look  up  the  records  and  take  the  attend- 
ance census.  No  pastor  was  requested  either  by  mail  or  in 
person  to  prepare  the  blank  in  his  own  church,  although  many 
gave  great  assistance.  Association  members  and  secretaries 
were  asked  each  to  take  a  church,  plan  the  work  of  secur- 
ing the  information  and  divide  the  labor  involved.  About 
sixty-five  of  the  blanks  were  put  out  shortly  after  April  1, 
1900,  and  records  were  received  from  only  twenty-one  of 
these.  The  eminently  satisfactory  character,  however,  of  the 
information  secured,  and  the  representative  nature  of  the 
records,  lend  special  interest  and  weight  to  the  results  of  the 
study.  Of  the  twenty-one  churches  reporting  [page  47], 
eight  are  Chicago  city  churches,  five  Chicago  suburban 
churches,  four  at  Elgin,  Illinois,  two  at  Sterling,  Illinois,  and 
two  at  Rockford,  Illinois.  They  classify  according  to  de- 
nominations as  follows:  Methodist  Episcopal,  6;  Baptist,  5; 
Presbyterian,  6 ;  Congregational,  3 ;  Lutheran,  1.  In  point  of 
size  they  range  all  the  way  from  a  Swedish  Methodist  Church, 
with  a  membership  of  100,  to  the  Second  Baptist  Church  of 
Chicago,  with  a  membership  of  1509.  Nineteen  of  these 
churches  report  a  total  membership  of  11,957,  fourteen  re- 
port a  membership  of  3091  males  and  5828  females,  or  a 
proportion  of  36  per  cent  males  to  64  per  cent  females 
[page  48].  The  numbers  in  the  margin  refer  to  churches 
on  the  list.  The  variation  in  the  proportion  of  males  to 


CHURCH  MEMBERSHIP 


*  1.  Swedish  Methodist  Episcopal 100 

2.  Elgin  Epworth  Methodist  Episcopal 136 

*  3.  First  United  Presbyterian 205 

4.  Sterling  First  Presbyterian   310 

""-     5.  Ravens  wood  Congregational 389 

**    6.  Oak  Park  Baptist   398 

*  7.  Ashland  Boulevard  Methodist  Episcopal . .  400 

8.  Sterling  Lutheran 420 

9.  Rockford  Baptist 458 

10.  Rockford  Presbyterian 484 

**  11.  Woodlawn  Presbyterian 500 

*  12.  Oakland  Methodist  Episcopal 650 

13.  Elgin  First  Congregational 725 

**  14.  Oak  Park  Congregational 895 

*  15.  Centenary  Methodist  Episcopal 1000 

*  16.  Third  Presbyterian 1033 

17.  Elgin  First  Baptist 1049 

*  18.  Immanuel  Baptist 1296 

*  19.  Second  Baptist 1509 

20.  Elgin  Grace  Methodist  Episcopal 

**  21.  Ravenswood  United  Presbyterian 


*  Chicago — City.     **  Chicago — Suburban. 


47 


CHURCH     MEMBERSHIP 
BY   SEX 


MALES    36 


FEMALES    64% 


DISTRIBUTION     OF     MALES 


20%          30%  40%          50% 


1 

2 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

10 

11 

14 

16 

17 

18 

19 


Prepared  by  G.  W.  Ehler. 


48 


C/iurck  Investigation.  49 

females  is  not  very  great,  the  highest  proportion  of  males 
being  43  per  cent  in  the  Swedish  church,  just  mentioned, 
and  the  smallest  percentage  being  22  per  cent  in  the  Elgin 
Epworth  M.  E.  Church.  Practically  no  difference  is  to  be 
noted  in  the  proportion  of  males  to  females  between  the  various 
city,  suburban  and  small-town  churches.  The  proportion  is 
strikingly  uniform,  and  considering  the  representative  char- 
acter of  the  churches  reporting,  the  result  is  probably  a 
close  approximation  of  the  average  condition.*  Eight  of 
these  churches  with  37  per  cent  males  and  63  per  cent 
females,  also  report  [page  50]  a  membership  for  1895,  five 
years  ago,  composed  of  39  per  cent  males  to  61  per  cent 
females.  Of  this  number  again  four  give  the  membership 
for  1890,  ten  years  ago.  The  proportion  of  males  to  females 
of  these  four  churches  for  the  three  periods  is  as  follows : 

1890 — 38  per  cent  males  to  62  per  cent  females. 

1895 — 40  per  cent  males  to  60  per  cent  females. 

1900 — 38  per  cent  males  to  62  per  cent  females. 

As  far  as  the  records  make  report  there  has  been  practically 
no  change  in  the  proportion  of  males  to  females  during  the 
past  decade. 

The  first  thing  that  had  to  be  done  after  the  reports  were 
received  was  to  tabulate  the  information  on  a  large  chart  and 
reduce  the  figures  given  to  percentages.  The  information 
was  then  in  shape  for  a  comparative  study  of  the  churches  in- 
dividually or  in  groups  respecting  one  or  more  items  as  was 
desired.  Many  most  interesting  points  were  disclosed  by  this 
study.  For  example  [page  51]:  eleven  churches  report  on 
yearly  accessions  of  males  and  females  by  letter  and  on  con- 
fession since  1890.  There  is  the  widest  variation  among  in- 
dividual churches  in  this  regard.  One  church  reports  80 
per  cent  of  accessions  by  letter  and  only  20  per  cent  on 
confession,  while  another  reports  only  11  per  cent  by 
letter  and  89  per  cent  on  confession.  Notwith- 
standing this  variation,  in  all  the  churches  reporting  practi- 
cally one-half  were  received  by  letter  and  one-half  on  con- 

*A  similar  study  by  Dr.  Luther  Gulick,  of  fifty  churches  scattered  all  over  the  coun- 
try shows  a  variation  of  only  1  or  2  per  cent  from  the  conditions  presented  above. 


CHURCH 

MEMBERSHIP 

BY    SEX 


MALES 


FEMALES 


l8pO 


8   CHURCHES 


61% 


4    CHURCHES 


62% 


Prepared  by  G.  W.  Ehler. 


50 


CHURCH    ACCESSIONS 
1890  -  1899 


MALES 


FEMALES 


BY  LETTER 


ON  CONFESSION 


39%  6V/o 

DISTRIBUTION     OF    MALES 


o% 


20%  30%  40%  50% 


1 

2 

4 

5 

6 

8 

10 

11 

14 

16 

18 


LETTER 


CONFESSION 


Prepared  by  G.  W.  Ehler. 


51 


52  The  Rdigious  Condition  of  Young  Men. 

fession,  while  the  percentage  of  males  to  females  in  each  class 
is  identically  the  same,  viz. :  39  per  cent  to  61  per  cent. 

Eleven  churches  [page  53]  classify  the  male  membership  ac- 
cording to  occupations.  There  is  still  to  be  noticed  con- 
siderable variation  among  individual  churches,  but  the 
average  for  eleven  churches  is  as  follows :  professional,  23  per 
cent;  mercantile,  40  per  cent:  skilled  labor,  12  per  cent; 
unskilled  labor,  10  per  cent;  unclassified,  15  per  cent. 

The  diagram  showing  these  percentages  indicates  plainly 
the  relative  condition  in  each  church  with  reference  to  the 
different  classes.  It  is  also  interesting  to  compare  this  table 
with  the  membership  of  the  Chicago  Central  association 
classified  in  the  same  way  [page  56],-  showing  how  the  associa- 
tion differs  from  the  church  in  the  degree  to  which  it  has  men 
of  different  occupations  in  its  membership.  The  church  and 
the  association  are  continually  being  censured  for  failure  to 
reach  the  great  class  of  artisans.  If  the  present  study  is  any 
index  of  the  real  conditions  in  the  country  at  large  the  charge 
is  not  without  foundation.  Associations  as  a  rule,  however, 
would  show  a  higher  percentage  of  the  artisan  class  than  the 
Central  Department,  Chicago,  but  it  should  be  ascertained  if 
we  are  reaching  that  class  proportionately. 

*  Eight  churches  report  36  per  cent  males  to  64  per  cent 
females  [page  54].  The  male  members  classify  by  ages  [page  55] 
as  follows:  under  16,  13  per  cent;  between  16  and  40,  53  per 
cent;  over  40,34  per  cent.  Ten  young  people's  societies  report 
325  males  and  675  females,  or  a  percentage  of  32  to  68.  Of 
these  325  males  6  per  cent  are  under  16,  84  per  cent  be- 
tween 16  and  40,  and  10  per  cent  over  40.  Eleven  Sunday- 
schools  report  484  males  to  616  females,  or  a  percentage  of  44 
to  56.  Of  these  484  males  in  the  Sunday-school,  57  per  cent 
are  under  16,  37  per  cent  between  16  and  40,  and  6  per  cent 
over  40. 

Bringing  together  these  facts  of  membership  in  church,  Sun- 
day-school and  young  people 's  society,  we  note  at  a  glance  the 
characteristic  differences. 


*The  two  charts  referred  to  in  this  paragraph  [pajr^s  54-55]  should  be  studied  together, 
as  each  bar  of  the  second  supplements  the  corresponding  bar  of  the  first. 


OCCUPATIONS 
OF    CHURCH    MEMBERS 

UNCLASSIFIED  J  SKILLED  LABOR  PROFESSIONAL 

UNSKILLED  LABOR  I  MERCANTILE 


15%        10%     12%  40%  23% 

DISTRIBUTION    OF   OCCUPATIONS 

%       10     20      30     40      50      60     70     80      90     100 


Prepared  by  G   \V.  Ehler. 


SEX 
OF    MEMBERS    OF 


MALES 


FEMALES 


CHURCHES 


10  Y.  PEOPLES 
SOCIETIES 


I  SONDAY 
SCHOOLS 


44% 


56% 


OF    ATTENDANTS  AT 


18  A.  M. 
SERVICES 


19  P.M. 
SERVICES 


16  Y.  PEOPLES 
SOCIETIES 


13  SUNDAY 
SCHOOLS 


15  PRAYER 
MEETINGS 


33% 


Prepared  by  G.  W.  Ehler. 


54 


AGE    GROUPS 
OF   MALE    MEMBERS 

OF  CHURCHES,     SUNDAY=SCHOOLS, 
YOUNG  PEOPLE'S  SOCIETIES 


UNDER  16 


16  TO  40 


OVER  40 


CHURCHES 


10  Y.  PEOPLES 
SOCIETIES 

II  SUNDAY 
SCHOOLS 


57% 


37% 


OF  ATTENDANTS   AT 


18A.M. 
SERVICES 

19  P.M. 
SERVICES 

16  Y.  PEOPLES 
SOCIETIES 


1 3  SUNDAY 
SCHOOLS 


15  PRAYER 
MEETINGS 


59% 


32% 


Prepared  by  G.  W.  Ehler. 


55 


OCCUPATIONS 
COMPARED 


UNCLASSIFIED 


SKILLED  LABOR  •  PROFESSIONAL 


UNSKILLED  LABOR  I  MERCANTILE 


CHURCHES 


23% 


ASSOCIATION 

CENTRAL  DEPARTMENT  ONLY 


Prepared  by  G.  W.  Ehler. 


56 


Church  Investigation.  57 

CENSUS  OF  ATTENDANCE. 

Eighteen  churches  report  attendance  at  morning  service  as 
follows:  34  per  cent  males;  66  per  cent  females.  Males 
classify  under  16,  21  per  cent;  16  to  40,  47  per  cent  over 
40,  32  per  cent. 

Nineteen  churches  report  evening  attendance:  males, 
36  per  cent;  females,  64  per  cent.  Males  classify  under 
16, 12  per  cent;  between  16  and  40,  61  per  cent;  over  40,  27 
per  cent. 

Sixteen  churches  report  attendance  at  young  people's  so- 
ciety :  males,  37  per  cent ;  females,  63  per  cent.  Males  classify 
under  16,  16  per  cent;  16  to  40,  67  percent;  over  40,  17  per 
cent. 

Thirteen  churches  report  Sunday-school  attendance :  males, 
40  percent;  females,  60  per  cent.  Males  under  16,  55  per 
cent;  between  16  and  40,  36  per  cent;  over  40,  9  per  cent. 

Fifteen  churches  report  prayer-meeting  attendance :  males, 
33  per  cent;  females,  67  per  cent.  Males  classify  under  16, 
9  per  cent;  16  to  40,  59  percent;  over  40,  32  per  cent. 

Bringing  together  for  the  purpose  of  comparative  study 
these  figures  concerning  attendance,  we  note  two  things: 
first,  a  considerable  difference  in  the  division  of  the  males  in 
the  three  age  periods;  second,  the  extraordinary  regularity 
with  which  the  proportion  of  males  to  females  in  attendance 
at  these  five  different  services  approximates  the  proportion  of 
males  to  females  in  the  membership  of  the  church,  which  we 
found  at  the  beginning  to  be  36  to  64.  It  is  evident  that  if 
the  churches  have  on  their  rolls  any  number  of  members  who 
do  not  attend  services,  the  proportions  of  males  to  females  are 
preserved  by  the  attendance  at  the  services  of  a  corresponding 
number  who  are  not  members  of  the  organization. 

Statistics  concerning  Sunday-school  teachers,  officers  in 
young  people's  societies  and  leaders  in  young  people's  meet- 
ings show  the  following  proportions  of  males  and  females, 
respectively :  Sunday-school  teachers,  35  per  cent  to  65  per 
cent ;  officers  in  young  people 's  societies,  46  per  cent  to  54 
percent;  leaders,  55  per  cent  to  45  per  cent.  It  is  in  con- 


58  The  Religious  Condition  of  Young  Men. 

nection  with  the  leadership  of  the  young  people's  meetings 
that  we  find  for  the  first  time  a  larger  percentage  of  males 
than  females. 

We  have  not  considered  it  within  the  province  of  this  Study 
to  attempt  to  do  more  than  present  the  real  condition. 
It  is  for  others  to  show  why  this  condition  obtains,  and  to 
tell  us  how  it  can  be  improved.  It  may  not  be  amiss, 
however,  at  this  stage  of  the  discussion,  to  call  attention  to 
the  reasons  advanced  by  Professor  Coe,  to  whose  book  previous 
allusion  has  been  made,  in  discussing  this  very  question, 
He  gives  the  following  reasons,  which  we  present  without  dis- 
cussion : 

First.  Men  are  under  greater  industrial  and  economic 
pressure  than  women,  and  have  less  time  for  worship  and 
other  religious  exercises. 

Second.  Men  find  greater  dissatisfaction  with  the  church 
and  its  attitude  toward  industrial  problems  and  movements. 

Third.  The  church  is  suffering  partial  paralysis,  due  to 
her  lack  of  whole-hearted  sympathy  with  the  modern  intel- 
lect. She  desires  light,  yet  distrusts  the  light  bringers. 

Fourth.  The  reason  considered  by  Professor  Coe  as  the 
greatest  of  all,  and  the  one  he  started  out  to  prove,  is 
that  the  large  and  persistent  excess  of  women  in  the  churches 
is  chiefly  due  to  a  superior  adaptation  of  church  life  to  the 
feminine  nature.  "It  is  because  the  church  looks  at  things 
with  feminine  eyes  and  calls  chiefly  into  exercise  the  faculties 
in  which  women  excel  men." 

In  a  previous  discussion  on  the  relation  of  music  to  the 
spiritual  life,  Professor  Coe  made  an  analysis  of  the  Methodist 
Hymnal,  and  furnishes  on  page  225  of  his  book  the  following 
striking  exhibit: 

Number  of  hymns  in  the  entire  collection 1117 

Number  of  hymns  on  Christ,  the  Christian  and 

the  Church ' 608 

On  Life  and    Character    of     Christ,  Christian 
Activity  and  Church  Work 144 


Church  Investigation.  59 

On  the  Life  Activities  of  Christ,  Christian 
Activity  and  Charities  and  Reforms,  all  ob- 
jectively viewed 17 

Quoting  further.  "In  other  words,  less  than  24 per  cent 
of  the  hymns  on  Christ,  the  Christian  and  the  Church  have  to 
do  with  the  life  and  character  of  Christ,  Christian  activity  and 
church  work.  Again,  less  than  3  per  cent  of  the  said  hymns 
on  Christ,  the  Christian  and  Church  treat  of  the  life  ac- 
tivities of  Christ,  Christian  activity  and  charities  and  reforms 
in  an  objective  spirit.  Finally,  it  follows  that  of  the  entire 
collection  only  about  1^  percent  take  up  the  practical  prob- 
lems of  the  e very-day  activities  of  the  adult  Christian  in  this 
spirit. ' '  Now,  all  of  this  is  of  the  greatest  moment  to  us  as 
religious  workers.  May  no.t  the  explanation  of  the  condition 
of  the  religious  work  of  the  association  lie  in  some  of  these 
same  reasons  given  for  present  conditions  in  the  church?. 
Similar  considerations  have  led  some  to  agitate  for  a  change 
in  the  character  of  song-books  used  in  connection  with  associa- 
tion services. 


CHAPTER   V. 

A   GROUP   STUDY. 

1^  HE  "  questionn  aire ' '  method  was  employed  in  connection 
with  the  last  phase  of  study.  The  classification  of  the 
membership  and  the  church  investigation  had  thrown 
light  on  some  of  the  points  concerning  which  information  was 
desired.  Especially  did  they  reveal  the  hold  the  church  and 
association  have  upon  young  men.  The  "  questionnaire" 
method,  employed  so  much  of  late  in  empirical  studies,  was 
the  means  used  to  secure  information  from  the  members 
themselves.  If  a  list  of  questions  properly  prepared,  would 
be  intelligently  answered  by  young  men  themselves,  we  would 
be  in  possession  of  valuable  information  that  could  be  ob- 
tained in  no  other  way.  To  know  from  the  young  men  them- 
selves what  they  do  in  regard  to  certain  practices,  their  de- 
sires and  opinions,  their  ambitions  and  ideals,  and  numerous 
other  things,  is  of  the  greatest  importance.  None  of  the 
other  lines  of  study  would  ever  furnish  material  of  this  kind. 
Impelled,  therefore,  by  the  desire  to  find  out  if  it  were  possi- 
ble to  learn  anything  by  this  means,  an  experimental  question 
list  was  prepared  asking  for  information  about  practically 
everything  it  was  thought  it  would  be  desirable  to  know.  It 
was  not  known  whether  any  replies  would  be  received. 
The  circular  containing  the  questions  reads  as  follows : 

DEAR  SIR: 

Your  co-operation  is  very  earnestly  desired  by  the  Young 
Men's  Christian  Association  in  an  endeavor  it  is  making  to 
secure  a  fuller  and  more  exact  knowledge  of  its  members  arid 
other  men,  in  order  better  to  understand  their  needs  and  de- 
sires, and  thus  enable  it  to  improve  its  sendee.  You  can  give 
very  material  service  by  frank  and  full  answers  to  the  follow- 
ing questions.  No  public  use  will  be  made  of  the  data  that 
will  reflect  upon  those  answering.  Your  name  is  not  desired 


62  The  Religious  Condition  of  Young  Men. 

and  no  effort  will  be  made  to  discover  it.  Mail  this  in  the  en- 
closed envelope  not  later  than  May  1,  1900. 

1— (a.)  Member  of department  of  the 

association.  (b.)  Member years  of  the  associa- 
tion, (c.)  What  first  led  you  to  join  the  association?  (d.) 
What  is  your  chief  interest  in  it  now?  (e.)  What  privileges 
do  you  regularly  use? 

2— (a.)  Age  at  last  birthday,  (b.)  Birthplace  of  self, 
father,  mother.  (Give  state  if  in  the  United  States,  other- 
wise country.)  (c.)  What  is  your  usual  state  of  health  ? 
How  much  ill-health  or  physical  indisposition  have  you  had 
during  the  past  year? 

3 — (a.)  In  what  business  or  profession  are  you  engaged? 
(b.)  What  is  your  position  in  it?  (Do  riot  use  term  "  Clerk" 
if  you  are  a  salesman.)  (c.)  If  you  are  an  employe,  what  is 
your  monthly  salary  or  wage?  (d.)  Is  your  employment 
regular  or  irregular?  (e.)  What  are  your  hours  of  employ- 
ment? (f.)  How  much  overtime  do  you  work  and  when? 
(g.)  Do  you  work  Sundays?  (h.)  Do  you  have  Saturday 
half-holidays?  When?  (i.)  What  are  your  hours  of  sleep? 
Are  they  regular?  Do  you  sleep  well? 

4 — (a.)  Are  you  married?  At  what  age  did  you  marry? 
(b.)  If  single,  do  you  live  at  home,  in  public  boarding-house, 
or  board  in  a  private  family?  (c.)  If  married,  do  you  board 
or  keep  house?  (d.)  What  are  your  expenses  for  board  and 
room? 

5 — (a.)  How  far  through  college  or  school  did  you  go? 
What  college  did  you  attend?  (b.)  What  special  lines  of 
study  do  you  follow?  In  school  or  alone?  How  much  time 
do  you  devote  to  them?  (c.)  What  periodicals  do  you  usu- 
ally read?  (d.)  What  books  (bound  or  unbound  of  any  kind) 
have  you  read  during  the  past  six  months? 

6 — (a.)  To  what  other  organizations  do  you  belong? 
(Give  names  and  state  whether  secret.)  (1.)  Social?  (2.) 
Political?  (3.)  Fraternal?  (4.)  Religious?  (5.)  Scientific? 
(6.)  Professional?  (7.)  Labor?  (8.)  "Civic?  (9.)  Business? 
(10.)  Military?  (11.)  Miscellaneous? 


A  Group  Study.  63 

7 — (a.)  Do  you  attend  any  of  the  following,  and  if  so,  state 
denomination,  where  and  how  often:  (1.)  Church,  A.  M.; 
P.  M.?  (2.)  Sunday-school?  (3.)  Prayer-meeting?  (4.) 
Other  religious  services?  Why  do  you,  or  why  do  you  not, 
attend?  Do  you  attend  more  or  less  than  formerly,  and 
why?  (b.)  If  you  do  not  attend  any  of  these  now.  did  you 
at  any  time  in  the  past?  Which?  Denomination?  At  what 
age  did  you  stop?  Why  did  you  stop?  (c.)  Are  you  a 
member  of  any  church?  Which?  Why  are  you,  or  why  are 
you  not?  (d.)  Are  you  a  professing  Christian?  If  not,  why 
not?  Do  you  expect  ever  to  be?  Do  you  believe  in  the 
Christian  life?  What  is  your  conception  of  the  Christian 
life?  (e.)  What  is  your  attitude  toward  religion?  Toward 
the  association  as  a  religious  institution?  (f .)  How  do  you 
usually  spencl  Sunday?  (g.)  What  was  the  religious  in- 
fluence of  your  family  upon  you? 

8 — (a.)  In  what  form  do  you  use  tobacco  and  how  often? 
Cigarettes?  Cigars?  Pipe?"  Chew?  (b.)  In  what  form  do 
you  use  stimulants  and  to  what  extent?  Coffee?  Tea? 
Malt  Liquor?  Spirituous  Liquor?  Morphine,  etc.?  (c.) 
What  desirable  results  do  you  secure  from  the  use  of  these? 
(d.)  What  undesirable  results  do  you  observe  from  the  use  of 
them? 

9 — (a.)  What  is  your  attitude  and  practice  in  regard  to  the 
following,  and  what  do  you  think  of  their  good  or  bad  effects  : 
(1.)  Dancing?  (2.)  Cards?  (3.)  Billiards  and  pool?  (4.) 
Theater9  (5.)  Gambling?  (b.)  State  fully  and  explicitly 
as  possible  in  what  manner  you  spend  your  leisure  time,  (c.) 
In  what  dors  your  social  life  consist? 

10 — (a.)  Did  you  ever  practice  masturbation?  At  what 
age  did  you  begin?  Under  what  circumstances  did  you  be- 
gin? When  did  you  stop?  Why?  If  you  have  not  quit, 
why  not?  (b.)  Did  you  ever  engage  in  sexual  intercourse 
out  of  wedlock?  Do  you  now?  How  often?  If  you  do  or 
do  not,  will  you  state  why?  In  your  opinion  what  is  the  at- 
titude of  the  average  girl  or  woman  on  this  subject? 

11 — What  are  your  personal  ambitions  in  regard  to     (a.) 


64  The  Religious  Condition  of  Young  Men. 

Your  business  and  profession?  (b.)  Marriage  and  a  family? 
(c.)  Morally  (as  to  your  conduct,  etc.)?  (d.)  Religiously 
(your  relation  to  God  and  Christ  and  the  hereafter)?  (e.) 
Tn  what  definite  ways  are  you  helping  other  people  or  doing 
things  not  primarily  for  yourself? 

12 — What,  if  any,  of  the  things  mentioned  in  questions 
7,  8,  9  and  10,  or  any  other  thing,  prevents  you  from  attaining 
the  ambitions  you  have  set  up  for  yourself  as  stated  in  ques- 
tion 11? 

The  circular  was  not  sent  to  the  entire  membership  of  the 
association.  None  were  even  put  out  by  mail.  About  350 
were  handed  out  personally  by  the  secretaries  to  members, 
with  the  statement  that  if  they  cared  to  fill  out  the  blank  and 
hand  in  the  same  to  do  so.  It  was  anticipated  that  it  would 
require  considerable  time  for  the  average  member  to  answer 
intelligently  all  the  questions.  This  is  no  doubt  a  chief  rea- 
son why  more  answers  were  not  received.  One  member  tes- 
tified that  he  took  a  whole  afternoon  and  evening  in  working 
over  the  blank.  The  second  reason,  however,  which  doubt- 
less operated  to  prevent  a  larger  number  of  replies  was  the 
unwillingness  to  answer  frankly  the  questions  under  No.  10. 
Criticisms  were  heard  from  two  or  three  quarters  against  the 
plan  of  circulating  such  a  petition.  On  the  other  hand,  how- 
ever, the  seventy-two  answers  received  were  on  the  whole  so 
satisfactory  and  so  representative,  as  far  as  can  be  seen  from 
studying  the  records,  that  the  plan  needs  no  further 
justification. 

Bearing  in  mind  then  that  this  phase  of  the  club's  work 
was  largely  an  experiment,  and  that  the  purpose  of  its  pre- 
sentation here  is  for  illustrating  method  rather  than  for  the 
value  of  the  results  secured,  it  will  not  be  necessary  to  em- 
phasize further  the  fact  that  no  special  claim  is  made  for  the 
general  value  of  the  conclusions.  At  the  same  time  the  study 
of  the  material  has  naturally  brought  out  much  that  is  not 
only  interesting  in  itself  but  is  strongly  suggestive  of  what 
further  investigation  might  bring  forth. 

Before  any  use  whatever  could  be  made  of  the  answers  it 


A  Group  Study.  65 

was  necessary  to  tabulate  the  same.  It  is  impossible  to  pre- 
sent on  this  occasion  all  that  is  suggested  and  revealed  by  a 
study  of  the  chart.  A  general  description  of  the  contents  and 
of  a  few  of  the  most  striking  revelations  must  suffice.  Of 
the  seventy-two  men  answering,  forty-three  were  professing 
Christians  and  twenty-nine  were  non-Christians.  In  ages 
they  range  from  15  to  60.  The  average  age  of  the  en- 
tire number  is  something  over  25.  Fourteen  of  the  men  were 
foreigners,  and  a  noticeable  fact  is  that  twelve  of  the 
fourteen  were  professing  Christians.  This  fact  is  of  value 
later  when  we  study  the  habits  in  regard  to  church  member- 
ship and  attendance  of  the  two  classes  of  men.  In  point  of 
health  fifty-six  stated  good  and  sixteen  bad,  ten  of  whom  are 
non-Christians.  This  fact  also  has  an  important  bearing. 
Each  group  has  a  proportionate  representation  in  the  dif- 
ferent occupations — professional,  mercantile,  skilled  and  un- 
skilled. Nine  of  the  entire  group  are  married  men;  forty- 
eight  live  at  home.  Twenty-six  received  their  education  in 
grammar  schools,  twenty-two  in  high  schools,  seven  in  business 
colleges,  seven  in  colleges  and  universities,  one  in  a  law  school, 
one  in  a  medical  school,  one  from  a  tutor  and  five  unstated. 

Little  difference  is  to  be  noted  in  the  character  and  num- 
ber of  periodicals  specified  by  the  two  classes.  An  excellent 
class  of  books  in  the  main  was  reported  by  both  groups  of  men. 
In  order  of  popularity  with  non-Christians  were :  David  Harum, 
Richard  Carvel,  To  Have  and  to  Hold,  Janice  Meredith,  The 
Little  Minister,  Ben  Hur,  Quo  Vadis,  The  Honorable  Peter 
Stirling,  When  Knighthood  Was  In  Flower,  Les  Miserables, 
What  a  Young  Husband  Ought  to  Know,  and  Sapho.  The 
books  most  frequently  read  by  the  Christians  in  the  order 
of  their  popularity  were:  Janice  Meredith,  Richard  Carvel, 
David  Harum,  Les  Miserables,  The  Honorable  Peter  Stirling, 
In  His  Steps,  Emerson's  Essays.  A  large  number  of  volumes 
of  the  same  general  character  had  been  read  by  single  indi- 
viduals of  both  classes. 

Thirty-one  of  the  professing  Christians  are  members  of 
evangelical  churches,  three  of  non-evangelical  churches, 


66  The  Religious  Condition  of  Young  Men. 

eight  not  members  of  churches  and  one  unstated.  It  is  in- 
teresting to  note  the  reasons  given  by  some  of  these  eight 
professing  Christians  for  not  belonging  to  the  church.  One 
"doesn't  want  to  assume  church  obligations/'  another  "never 
had  the  desire  to  join,"  another  "does  not  believe  that 
churches  are  run  properly,"  another  "does  not  want  to  adapt 
his  belief  to  any  certain  creed,"  and  another  gives  "insuffi- 
cient interest"  as  his  excuse. 

Four  of  the  non-Christians  are  members  of  churches.  Of 
this  number  two  were  brought  up  in  the  Lutheran  church, 
one  is  a  Catholic,  and  another  a  self-confessed  backslider. 
Out  of  nineteen  of  the  non-Christians  who  state  positively 
that  they  are  not  professing  Christians,  thirteen  state  that 
they  believe  in  the  Christian  life.  Altogether  twenty-one  out 
of  the  twenty-nine  express  the  same  belief.  This  is  a  strong 
index  of  the  extent  to  which  men  give  acquiescence  to  the 
Christian  religion  even  though  they  themselves  make  no  pro- 
fession. The  very  fact  that  these  men  are  members  of  the 
association  would  of  course  argue  a  certain  degree  of  sympathy 
with  Christian  things.  On  the  other  hand,  it  is  a  matter  of 
frequent  comment  that  a  great  change  has  taken  place  in  the 
last  few  years  in  the  attitude  of  the  great  masses  of  people 
toward  Christianity.  Only  twenty  years  ago  Tom  Paine 
clubs  were  numerous.  Infidel  literature  was  sold  freely  on 
the  trains,  and  numerous  other  evidences  were  shown  of  con- 
tempt for  Christianity  and  things  religious.  A  complete 
change  in  the  atmosphere  of  collegiate  life  to  our  own  knowl- 
edge has  been  brought  about  within  the  last  fifteen  years. 

When  it  comes  to  expectation,  however,  only  four  of  these 
men  state  that  they  have  any  expectation  of  becoming 
Christians.  Four  state  positively  that  they  do  not  expect  to, 
three  "hope  so,"  eight  "don't  know,"  i.  e.,  are  indifferent, 
while  ten  do  not  make  reply  to  this  question. 

If  the  facts  concerning  the  present  group  reflect  in  any  de- 
gree of  accuracy,  the  attitude  of  the  great  masses  of  non- 
Christian  young  men,  we  have  here  indicated  one  of  the 
greatest  encouragements  and  one  of  the  greatest  problems 


A  Group  Study.  67 

before  the  church  and  association  today.  Never  before  has 
Christianity  so  commended  itself  to  the  attention  and  to  the 
respect  of  all  intelligent  classes  of  people.  This  is  certainly 
encouraging.  On  the  other  hand,  if  it  is  impossible  to  use 
this  fact  for  the  purpose  of  bringing  men  into  open  affiliation 
with  the  church  and  Christian  things,  something  is  radically 
wrong.  It  is  one  thing  to  give  intellectual  assent  to  Chris- 
tianity ;  it  is  another  thing  to  follow  the  example  of  Christ 
in  one's  individual  life.  Unless  conditions  in  this  regard 
can  be  changed  in  the  coming  years,  there  are  some  reasons 
why  it  might  be  better  for  the  cause  of  Christianity  that  the 
intellectual  assent  with  failure  to  conform  be  turned  into 
unbelief  and  open  hostility.  As  seen  above,  most  of  these  men 
believe  in  the  Christian  life.  In  addition,  most  of  the  men 
never  expect  to  become  Christians.  In  analyzing  the  cases 
of  the  four  men  who  say  they  do  not  expect  to  become  Chris- 
tians, we  find  one  is  a  Jew,  one  is  a  socialist  whose  family 
influence  was  not  religious  and  whose  personal  life  is  bad,  one 
is  a  moralist,  who  had  no  special  home  training  when 
young,  the  fourth  proclaims  himself  an  agnostic  and  de- 
clares his  home  training  so  strict  when  young  as  to  make  him 
hate  all  religious  exercises.  His  personal  life  is  not  above 
reproach.  Analyzing  the  records  of  the  eight  men 
who  do  not  know  whether  they  expect  to  become 
Christians  or  not,  we  note  that  in  every  case  but  one  the 
family  influence  was  in  keeping  with  such  an  outcome,  and  all 
but  one  hold  liberal  views  on  amusements. 

Coming  to  the  replies  to  question  No.  10,  we  find 
some  unusual  developments.  With  reference  to  the  prac- 
tice of  masturbation,  thirty-one  of  the  Christians  state 
that  they  have  indulged  in  this  practice  in  the  past. 
The  average  age  when  twenty-eight  of  these  men  began 
is  13  years  and  9  months.  The  youngest  age  given  for 
starting  is  7,  the  oldest  20.  The  year  of  greatest  fre- 
quency is  14,  eleven  of  the  respondents  having  started 
at  that  period.  The  average  age  of  twenty  when  they  stopped 
the  practice  was  17  years  and  6  months,  ranging  all  the  way 


68  The  Religious  Condition  of  Young  Men. 

from  14  to  27  years.  The  year  of  greatest  frequency  of 
stopping  was  17,  the  age  given  by  five  of  the  respondents. 
Seven  of  these  professing  Christians  confess  to  not  having 
quit  the  practice  yet.  The  reasons  given  by  these  men  will 
be  considered  later.  Turning  now  to  the  replies  of  the  non- 
Christians  on  this  point,  we  find  that  out  of  twenty-nine  such, 
fifteen  say  "  Yes, ' '  eight  say  ' '  No, ' '  and  six  do  not  answer. 
The  average  age  of  the  fifteen  when  they  began  the  practice 
was  13  years  and  3  months,  the  years  of  greatest  frequency 
being  13  and  14.  One  started  as  young  as  7  and  two  as  late 
as  17.  The  average  age  when  twelve  quit  the  practice  was 
18  years  and  6  months.  Only  one  of  these  men  confessed  to 
not  having  entirely  stopped.  The  average  duration  of  the 
practice  for  the  Christians  was  3  years  and  9  months  and 
for  non-Christians  5  years  and  3  months.  The  fact 
that  stands  out  prominently  in  this  connection  is  that 
seven  professing  Christians  continue  the  practice  to 
some  extent,  while  only  one  non-Christian  makes  a  similar 
confession.  The  reason  for  this  unexpected  condition  is  not 
far  to  seek  when  we  pass  to  a  similar  inquiry  with  reference  to 
the  practice  of  the  two  groups  in  regard  to  illicit  sexual  inter- 
course. Only  fourteen  professing  Christians  confess  to 
having  indulged  at  any  time  in  the  past,  while  twenty-six  say 
"No. ' '  Only  three  fail  to  reply  on  this  point.  As  to  the  present 
practice  in  this  regard,  three  say  "Yes,"  and  thirty-six  say 
"No."  Three  do  not  reply.  The  non-Christians,  however, 
show  somewhat  differently,  as  might  be  expected.  Fif 
teen  say  they  indulged  in  the  past,  the  same  number  that 
practiced  the  first.  Nine  say  "No."  While  as  to  present 
practices,  nine  of  the  fifteen  who  indulged  in  the  past  still 
continue. 

Summing  up  the  comparison  of  the  two  groups  with  refer- 
ence to  both  temptations,  we  find  that  out  of  thirty-one 
Christians  practicing  the  former  in  the  past,  seven,  or  23 
per  cent  still  continue ;  while  of  fifteen  non-Christians  who 
practiced  the  same  in  the  past,  only  one  continues.  But,  in 
connection  with  the  second  practice,  only  21  per  cent  of  the 


A  Group  Study.  69" 

professing  Christians  still  indulge,  while  60  per  cent  of  the  non- 
Christians  still  do.  It,  therefore,  develops  that  the  explana- 
tion why  more  professing  Christians  continue  the  first  prac- 
tice than  non-Christians  lies  in  the  fact  that  the  non-Chris- 
tians take  up  and  continue  the  practice  of  the  second,  which 
Christian  men  refrain  from  doing.  The  relation  then  be- 
tween the  two  evils  is  thus  apparent.  Studying  the  indi- 
vidual records  of  the  seven  Christian  men  who  are  not  wholly 
free  from  the  first  sin,  we  find  that  five  are  putting  up  a 
hard  fight,  one  has  well  nigh  given  up  the  struggle,  and  one 
continues,  as  he  states,  "on  the  advice  of  a  medical  college.'7" 
The  reasons  given  by  the  other  class  of  men  for  continuing  the 
second  practice  may  be  summed  up  in  the  desire  to  gratify 
passion  and  failure  to  recognize  the  sin  involved.  Studying- 
the  reasons  given  by  six  others  who  discontinued  the  second 
practice,  it  is  seen  that  they  are  practically  all  of  a  materialistic- 
character,  none  displaying  any  moral  tone.  The  reasons  given 
by  el  even  Christian  men  for  discontinuing  this  latter  practice,, 
begun  before  they  became  Christians,  are  of  another  stamp- 
entirely.  Nearly  all  of  them  show  a  high  moral  tone,  and 
the  presence  of  an  influence  absent  from  the  other  group. 
It  may  be  said  by  some  that  the  two  groups  under  discussion 
are  not  representative  of  young  men  as  a  class,  or  even  of  the 
membership  of  the  association.  It  may  be  that  they  are 
better,  and  it  may  be  that  they  are  worse ;  we  do  not  know. 
Study  of  the  entire  records  of  the  individual  men  would  seem 
to  indicate  that  they  are  an  average  lot,  and  there  are  many- 
reasons  for  believing  that  concerning  temptations  of  the  flesh 
they  fitly  represent  the  majority  of  young  men.  Nothing- 
will  take  the  place  of  continued  investigation  for 
clearing  up  this  point.  The  conspicuous  thing  we 
notice  is  that  during  the  period  from  12  tx)  18  all  young 
men  seem  to  be  in  special  danger  largely  because,  of 
ignorance.  This  only  emphasizes  the  need  of  the  association 
exerting  a  positive  influence  on  the  young  boy  who  is ' '  almost 
a  man."  Good  books  on  the  subject  should  be  put  into  the 
hands  of  young  men  before  the  harm  is  done.  The  state- 


70  The  Religious  Condition  of  Young  Men. 

ment  of  one  member  that  he  never  realized  the  wrong  until 
a  good  book  fell  into  his  hands  by  accident,  and  his  plea  for 
good  books  for  other  young  men  shows  an  opportunity 
almost  entirely  neglected.  The  Central  Department  is 
endeavoring  to  discharge  this  obligation  by  offering  for  sale 
books  of  the  SELF  AND  SEX  SERIES,  the  sale  of  which  it  is 
definitely  known  in  two  instances  has  resulted  in  untold  good. 

Before  leaving  the  consideration  of  these  data,  it  may  be  inter- 
esting to  examine  the  practice  of  the  men  with  reference  to  the 
use  of  tobacco  and  the  attitude  of  the  two  groups  on  amuse- 
ments. Thirty-three  professing  Christians  report  on  the  use 
of  tobacco,  thirty-two  answering  in  the  negative.  The  one 
who  replied  "Yes"  was  a  boy  16  years  of  age,  who 
smoked  cigars  occasionally.  His  attitude  on  the  amusement 
question  was  liberal.  Twenty-seven  out  of  the  twenty-nine 
non-Christians  also  report  on  tobacco,  fifteen  of  whom  do 
not  use  it  at  all.  None  under  20  years  of  age  of  those 
reporting  make  any  use  of  tobacco.  Of  those  using  to- 
bacco, eight  smoke  cigars,  seven  a  pipe,  six  cigarettes  and 
one  chews. 

Passing  now  to  amusements,  we  find  a  most  interesting 
comparison.  Presenting  the  opinions  as  given  respecting  the 
different  forms  of  amusement,  under  the  three  heads  of 
Approval,  Approval  Under  Restrictions  and  Condemnation, 
we  have  the  following  table : 


ATTITUDE  ON  AMUSEMENTS. 
PROFESSING  CHRISTIANS 

Approval 
Approval.        Under  Restriction.        Condemnation. 

Dancing 8                     6  11 

Cards  .". 3                     9  12 

Billiards  and  Pool                  2                      5  9 

Theater 5                   15  6 

Gambling .              0                     0  26 


A  Group  /Study.  71 

ATTITUDE    ON    AMUSEMENTS. 

NON-CHRISTIANS 

A  pproval 
Approval.      Under  Restriction.         Condemnation. 

Dancing 9  13  2 

Cards 6  13  1 

Billiards  and  Pool  .  .  5  12  0 

Theater 12  15  1 

Gambling 0  3  16 

Among  professing  Christians  a  certain  number  approve 
the  first  four,  a  somewhat  larger  number  approve  the 
same  under  restrictions,  while  by  far  the  largest  number 
disapprove  these  forms  except  in  the  case  of  the  theater, 
where  a  noticeably  small  number  disapprove  outright. 
Among  non-Christians  we  find  exactly  what  we  might  have 
reason  to  expect.  A  goodly  number  approve  outright  the 
first  four  forms,  and  the  remaining  with  one  or  two  exceptions 
approve  under  restrictions,  only  four  disapproving.  The 
condemnation  of  gambling  is  practically  unanimous  in  both 
cases.  As  represented  on  the  table,  we  see  that  the  votes  of 
the  second  chart  are  practically  confined  to  the  first  two 
columns,  while  in  the  first  table  they  are  distributed  over  all 
the  columns,  the  larger  number  being  in  the  third. 

We  have  not  begun  to  exhaust  the  possibilities  of  study  of 
even  this  amount  of  information.  We  have  tried  to  give  a 
general  idea  of  the  character  of  the  contents  and  to  demon- 
strate some  of  the  directions  in  which  fruitful  study  might  be 
made. .  A  word  at  this  time  with  reference  to  the  sincerity  of 
the  answers  might  be  in  order.  As  stated  on  the  blank,  the 
names  of  the  respondents  were  not  desired  and  no  effort  was 
made  to  secure  them.  The  reasons  that  might  be  advanced 
to  support  the  genuineness  of  the  records  are  the  following : 

First.  The  absence  of  any  motive  to  furnish  an  untruthful 
record. 

Second.  The  internal  evidences  of  veracity  in  the  records 
themselves.  One  cannot  read  any  of  the  records  through  with- 
out recognizing  its  coherency  and  consistency  throughout.  A 


72  The  Religious  Condition  of  Young 

fabrication  would  betray  itself  at  every  point.  After  a  study 
of  these  records  in  all  their  bearings,  the  personality  of  the 
individuals  stands  out  in  a  remarkable  way.  As  a  matter 
of  fact,  there  is  no  need  of  the  names  of  the  men.  We  are  in 
possession  of  sufficient  in  these  records  to  form  an  adequate 
and  correct  idea  of  the  different  individuals. 

Additional  time  might  profitably  be  expended  on  these  data, 
First,  in  making  a  comparative  study  of  the  various  con- 
ceptions given  of  the  Christian  life.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  the 
conceptions  given  by  non-Christians  are  quite  as  good  as 
those  given  by  Christians.  Not  quite  as  much  religious 
phraseology  is  employed,  but  the  content  of  the  ideas  ad- 
vanced is  practically  the  same.  Second,  a  comparative  study 
of  Sabbath  observance  of  the  two  groups.  Third,  how  the 
leisure  time  of  individuals  in  the  two  groups  is  employed. 
Fourth,  a  comparative  study  of  the  ambitions  of  the  two 
groups  of  men  respecting  business,  family,  morals  and  religion. 
Fifth,  a  comparative  study  of  what  the  individuals  of  the  two 
groups  are  doing  in  the  way  of  helping  others.  This- 
ought  to  bring  out  some  very  interesting  matter.  Sixth,  a 
comparative  study  of  the  hindrances  which  stand  in  the- 
way  of  attaining  their  ideals. 

This  and  much  more  might  be  studied,  but  it  is  reasonable 
to  assume  that  if  investigations  similar  to  these  were  made  in 
different  cities  and  for  different  classes  of  young  men,  both 
within  and  without  the  membership  of  the  association,  some 
of  the  most  valuable  material  for  studying  the  actual  religious 
condition  of  young  men  would  be  secured.  It  is  difficult  to- 
see  how  information  of  this  kind  could  be  obtained  in  any 
other  way. 

SUMMARY  AND  CONCLUSION. 

In  conclusion,  and  by  way  of  summary,  we  have  attempted 
in  this  Study  to  give  the  results  of  three  main  lines  of  inves- 
tigation : 

First.  We  have  compared  the  field  of  the  city  and  town 
association  work  in  the  United  States,  in  the  State  of  Illinois,. 


A  Group  Study.  73 

and  in  the  city  of  Chicago,  with  the  membership  of  the  asso- 
ciation and  have  illustrated  by  the  classification  of  the  mem- 
bership of  the  Central  Department,  Chicago,  the  value  to  a 
local  association  of  knowing  the  composition  of  its  member- 
ship. 

Second.  The  church  investigation  has  revealed  the  kind 
of  information  a  local  association  ought  to  have  concern- 
ing the  churches  of  the  community,  and  also  the  information 
it  is  possible  to  get. 

Third.  The  question  list  has  illustrated  another  method 
by  which  we  may  get  from  representative  young  men  them- 
selves definite  information  which  can  be  secured  in  no  other 
way. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  reiterate  the  statement  that  the  pri- 
mary aim  of  the  Study  has  been  to  emphasize  method  rather 
than  results.  The  results,  as  far  as  obtained,  have,  we  trust, 
served  to  illustrate  the  methods,  to  demonstrate  their  feasi- 
bility and  to  prove  that  the  extended  use  of  the  same  or 
similar  methods  would  result  in  inestimable  gain  to  our  work. 
The  Study  is  presented  in  the  hope  that  it  may  be  of  some 
service  to  the  work  at  large  and  that  some  practical  organiza- 
tion may  spring  up  as  a  result  whereby  all  desiring  to  co- 
operate in  further  study  and  investigation  similar  to  what 
is  herein  suggested  maybe  enabled  to  "  associate  their  efforts 
for  the  extension  of  Christ 's  Kingdom  among  young  men. " 


APPENDIX. 


IMPROVED   METHOD   FOR   TABULATING   MEMBERSHIP 
INFORMATION. 


THE  method  here  described  is  designed  as  apart  of  a  per- 
manent membership  record.     It  is  on  the  card  index 
plan,  and  those  familiar  with  the  same  will  see  at  once 
its  advantages.     In  the  tab  system  used  in  most  associations 
for  indicating  monthly  expirations  there  are,  of  course,  twelve 
positions — one  for  each  month;  and  the  tabs  for  the  same  one 
month  fall  in  line  in  the  drawer  as  illustrated. 


76 


Appendix. 


The  present  scheme  uses  only  nine  of  these  twelve  posi- 
tions; all  but  the  sixth,  eleventh  and  twelfth,  as  shown  be- 
low. 


The  occupations  used  represent  the  main  divisions  in  the 
United  States  census,  and  are  definite  enough  for  all  practical 
purposes.  Each  group  may  be  easily  subdivided,  if  desired. 
Each  card  has  three  tabs,  indicating  the  following  three 
things:  (1)  Occupation.  (2)  Active  or  associate.  (3) 
New  or  old.  (By  a  new  member  is  meant  one  who  has 
joined  within  a  year.) 

Every  member  will  be  first  classified  under  one  of  the  oc- 
cupations and  consequently  every  card  will  have  a  tab  in  one 
of  the  first  five  positions.  Further,  every  member  so  classi- 
fied by  occupation  will  be  either  active  or  associate,  and  new 
or  old.  Therefore,  a  member  classified  under  mercantile 
would  require  a  card  with  one  of  the  four  following  arrange- 
ments of  tabs:  (1)  Mercantile,  active,  new.  (2)  Mercan- 
tile, active,  old.  (3)  Mercantile,  associate,  new.  (4) 
Mercantile,  associate,  old.  By  having  cards  with  three  tabs, 
each  in  the  right  position  to  suit  these  combinations,  the 


Appendix.  77 

facts  are  automatically  tabulated  when  the  cards  are  placed 
in  the  drawer.  Since  there  are  four  combinations  with  ref- 
erence to  each  occupation  and  since  there  are  five  occupa- 
tions, our  classification  is  increased  from  4  to  5x4=20.  Hav- 
ing four  different  classes  of  membership  concerning  each  of 
which  it  is  desired  to  tabulate  the  above  information  sepa- 
rately, viz.:  regular,  special,  junior  and  intermediate,  the  use 
of  cards  of  four  different  colors — buff,  blue,  salmon  and  white, 
increases  the  classification  from  5x4 =20  to  5x4x4=80.  Be- 
fore one  is  able  to  pick  out  from  stock  the  card  suited  to  any 
member's  case,  he  must  know  four  things  respecting  him: 
(1)  The  kind  of  a  member  he  is.  (2)  His  occupation.  (3) 
Whether  he  is  active  or  associate.  (4)  Whether  he  is  new 
or  old.  In  case  the  man  is  a  regular  member,  a  clerk,  a 
member  of  an  evangelical  church,  and  in  his  first  year  in  the 
association,  his  case  according  to  the  system  would  require 
a  buff  card  with  tabs  in  the  1st,  7th  and  9th  positions,  as 
illustrated. 


NATIVITY 
SELF 


ENG.    SCO.      IR.       CAN.    GER.     SCA.     MIS 


The  rest  of  the  information  concerning  the  individual  can 
be  indicated  on  the  card  which  is  printed  for  that  purpose. 
All  the  cards  are  printed  alike,  with  the  exception  of  the 
tabs.  A  drawing  of  a  complete  set  of  twenty  cards  is  here 
presented. 


Appendix. 


DISTANCE 


NATIVITY 
SELF 


SCO.      IR.       CAN.    GFIR.     SCA.     MIS. 


CHURCH 
ATT. 


LUT. 


PRIVILEGES 


7  8  9  10  11  12  13          14 


An  idea  of  the  relative  number  of  each  class  of  membership 
is  had  from  the  colors  of  the  cards;  of  each  occupation  from 
the  tabs  in  each  of  the  first  five  rows;  of  the  proportion  of 
active  and  associate,  and  of  new  and  old  from  the  tabs  in 
rows  seven  to  ten,  inclusive.  More  than  this,  if  one  should 
like  to  know  if  there  are  more  renewals  proportionately 
among  the  active  than  among  the  associate,  it  can  readily  be 
ascertained.  Likewise,  a  comparative  study  can  be  made 
of  each  occupation  with  reference  to  the  items  active,  asso- 
ciate, new  and  old.  All  this  can  be  done  without  going  into 
the  information  entered  on  the  body  of  the  cards.  But  if  it 
is  desired,  for  example,  to  study  comparatively  the  church- 


Appendix.  79 

going  habits  of  the  regular,  new  members  engaged  in  mer- 
cantile pursuits,  with  the  special,  old  members  in  professional 
occupations,  the  cards  containing  this  information  can 
quickly  be  separated  from  the  balance  and  by  counting  the 
check  marks  involved,  the  study  is  complete,  and  the  desired 
information  secured.  Under  no  other  system  is  it  possible 
to  tabulate  information  for  use  in  this  way,  always  preserving 
the  identity  of  each  member.  It  is  only  necessary  to  experi- 
ment with  the  system  to  see  how  serviceable  it  may  be.  The 
system  may  be  supplemented  by  a  membership  classification 
book,  for  use  in  entering  the  information  day  by  day,  bring- 
ing down  the  totals  for  the  week,  the  month,  and  the  year. 
This  is  of  value  in  certain  studies  limited  to  periods  of  time, 
but  not  for  comparative  group  studies.  The  book  is  arranged 
with  a  column  for  each  item  of  information,  a  page  being 
large  enough  for  a  month's  business.  Such  a  book  would 
not  be  alphabetical,  of  course,  and  would  not  keep  track  of 
the  individual.  It  would  simply  give  totals  under  each  item 
for  a  certain  day,  week,  month,  or  year.  No  argument  ought 
to  be  necessary  for  a  system  which  will  thus  answer  any  ques- 
tion regarding  the  membership.  Whatever  reason  is  given 
for  asking  questions  on  the  application  blanks  in  the  first 
place  is  the  reason  for  using  that  information  in  the  develop- 
ment of  the  work.  In  the  vaults  of  our  associations  there  are 
probably  hundreds  of  thousands  of  applications  of  young 
men  who  have  belonged  to  the  association  in  the  past.  They 
contain  certain  information  which,  if  in  any  shape  for  use, 
would  be  invaluable  to  the  church  and  the  association  and  to 
students  of  sociology.  The  use  of  the  present  system,  which 
can  be  adapted  to  any  field,  would  mark  a  great  forward  step. 
Any  inquiries  for  sample  cards  or  further  information  about 
the  system  will  be  cheerfully  answered. 


FAITHORN    PRINTING   CO. 
CHICAQO 


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